Despite the diagnosis, the 27-year-old has appeared in seven of the 11 games the Blues have played this season – four of which he was named as a starter for.
Suafoa was first diagnosed with sarcoma – a rare form of cancer that affects connective tissue such as muscles and bones – in November 2023, requiring surgery.
Shockingly, Suafoa continued training and even played twice for the Blues while undergoing radiation treatment for six weeks between February and April in 2024.
He was declared cancer-free in May last year. He played a total of six games in the Blues’ title-winning season.
Suafoa was rewarded after arguably the best season of his career – despite significant setbacks – being named in the Māori All Blacks side for their 2024 end-of-year tour of Japan.
“As always, health comes first and check on your people,” he said.
In May last year, Blues teammate Dalton Papali’i hailed Suafoa’s resilience in battling cancer while actively being taking part in Super Rugby.
“He’s a kid that didn’t want any special treatment when we all found out about it,” he said.
“He was still getting treatment while playing, he wasn’t missing a beat at training as well. Then he got the weeks off to get a little bit better.
“It [takes] a lot of resilience for him to do what he’s been doing. It shows so much courage by him coming back into the fold and wanting to play.
“All the boys are around him, he just got itchy feet going through it all. Once he got over it, he’s come back and is keen to get stuck in.
“It just shows the resilience and courage from him to really get through that and be with us fulltime.”
Benjamin Plummer is an Auckland-based reporter for the New Zealand Herald who covers sport and breaking news.
