‘I planned my funeral’– England rugby star wife admits after miracle cancer recovery

Tom Youngs, his wife Tiff and their daughter Maisie are now thinking about the future [Photo: Courtesy]

The wife of England rugby player Tom Youngs has told how her 'terminal' cancer miraculously disappeared after she started alternative treatment - including controversial cannabis oil.

Tiff Youngs' went through four years of traditional treatment, including a donor's stem cell transplant, after she was diagnosed with Hodgkin's lymphoma at the age of 28.

Then she was given the worst news imaginable.

Youngs has described Tiff as "inspirational" [Photo: Courtesy]

In 2017, doctors told Tiff her cancer was terminal, giving her between four weeks and a year to live.

She and Tom, who plays hooker for Leicester Tigers, were forced to tell their young daughter Maisie that "mummy would be going to heaven".

Tom's brother, fellow England rugby star Ben, pulled out of the British and Irish Lions squad to support his family.

In an emotional interview, Tiff has told how got ready to die before defying the odds.

Youngs plays hooker for Leicester Tigers [Photo: Courtesy]

Speaking to Sky News, she said: "Me, Tom and Maisie were sat on my bed, having a giggle and I just had to tell her.

"I said mummy has been very poorly, and that mummy would be going to heaven. She started crying. It's the worst thing I have ever had to do and I don't wish it on anyone."

Tiff put her affairs in order, put guardians in place and started looking for a nanny to help Tom. She sold her clothes and planned her own funeral, down to every last detail, including the music.

In July, though, something changed and Tiff decided "I'm not going anywhere".

She told Sky: "I decided that I hadn't had a child for her to grow up without a mother. I want to bring her up, so I decided to try an alternative treatment. I had nothing to lose - if it gave me an extra week with her it was worth it."

On others' recommendations, Tiff sought out two women, who helped with alternative treatment.

She went on a strict diet plan of green juices, fish, no dairy, no red meat, no sugar and no tea or coffee. It involved fasting from 7pm until noon the following day.

She used an ENS cosmodic machine - a three-pronged rollerball device that's rubbed up and down the back and tells the brain to tell your body to produce the cells it's not producing.

In addition, she started taking THC cannabis oil, a controversial treament.

When she came down with a cold in February, she went to hospital and was told her cancer had gone and that she was in remission.

Ben Youngs (L) pulled out of the British & Irish Lions squad to be there for his brother Tom (R) and their family [Photo: Courtesy]

Now, after being spurred on by a desire to see her daughter grow up, she's planning for the future.

She said: "I had prepared to die. But Maisie kept me going. I wanted to see her start school. I wanted to see her birthday. I would set goals and I would achieve them and that pushed me through."

Last year, Youngs praised his wife's resilience.

He said: “She is an inspirational lady, I can tell you that. A very strong character. She doesn’t moan, she gets on with it. She probably doesn’t believe it herself, but she is an amazing woman.

“What she’s gone through is pretty horrendous, but she is still there, still smiling, still pretty honest and open and talking about it. She’s doing really, really well at the moment.”