Thursday 4 December 2014 21:59, UK
Ireland flanker Chris Henry has expressed his gratitude to medical experts as he begins his recovery from a mini-stroke.
The 30-year-old Ulsterman was pulled out of Joe Schmidt's squad ahead of the 29-15 victory over South Africa on November 8 and has since had surgery on the hole in his heart that caused him to suffer a Transient Ischaemic Attack.
"It's been a scary few weeks to be honest but I feel very lucky that I was in that environment and getting such incredible medical expertise so quickly," he told Ulster's official website.
"They got to the bottom of things swiftly and I think that's the most important thing; when something like that happens, the unknown is the scary thing and to have clarity on what was going on and having the problem fixed so quickly - for me, I feel very lucky."
On targeting a return to action, Henry added: "I think that (the World Cup) is a realistic target.
"In my mind, I want to be back by the end of this season. Whether that is pushing it too much, we'll just have to wait and see."
