London-based political advisor and ideologue of the Tamil Tiger rebels, Anton Balasingham, is suffering from a severe cancerous disease and is battling for his life, a media report said on Wednesday.

Colombo-based Tamil newspaper Sudar Oli, known to have close links with Balasingham, quoting medical reports said, 'The cancer that hit the 68-year-old chief negotiator of the LTTE is at an incurable stage as it has fast spread to the liver, lungs and born marrow.'

'The exact kind of cancer will be known within a couple of days when the test report of his liver is released,' the media report said, adding that Balasingham was admitted to a hospital in London last Thursday.

Balasingham, who is living with a transplanted kidney, is already a heart and diabetic patient and has been living in London with his Australian-born wife Adale Anne.

The reports of Balasingham falling ill have come at a time when the LTTE is commemorating its Heroes' Week, which will culminate with the elusive rebel leader Velupillai Prabhakaran's annual speech on November 27, which is considered the policy statement of the rebel outfit.