BERLIN, Sept 22 — Hertha Berlin winger Jean-Paul Boetius is set to have an operation after being diagnosed with testicular cancer, making him the fourth Bundesliga player this year to receive such a diagnosis.

Boetius, 28, who arrived in the German capital from Bundesliga side Mainz in summer, discovered the news after a urological examination yesterday.

Boetius joins teammate Marco Richter, Union Berlin’s Timo Baumgartl and Borussia Dortmund’s Sebastien Haller in undergoing treatment for the disease.

Both Richter and Baumgartl have since made successful returns to the pitch, while Haller is currently undergoing chemotherapy after being diagnosed in July.

"We will stand closely together as a Hertha family,” said Hertha football director Fredi Bobic in a statement released today.

"As bitter as this news is, we are full of hope and confidence that Jean-Paul will recover and return to our circle as soon as possible.”

Klaus-Peter Dieckmann, the director of the Testicular Tumour Centre at Hamburg’s Asklepios Clinic said there was no link between sports and cancer, telling Germany’s SID news agency men of a professional sporting age are susceptible to the disease.

"When men get cancer at this age — between 20 and 40 — it is almost always testicular cancer,” he said.

"Therefore, it is not surprising that Bundesliga players are impacted.”

Bundesliga players are not regularly screened for testicular cancer pursuant to league rules, although some clubs such as Union Berlin have begun screening their players for the illness. — AFP