WORLD champion snooker player Graeme Dott said he would take a break from the game to care for his sick wife.

The 29-year-old rushed home last night to be at his pregnant wife's side after tests revealed she could have a tumour.

Dott, from Larkhall, Lanarkshire, was told the news just before playing in a second round match at the Masters, Wembley. He lost 6-2 and immediately boarded a plane home.

Wife Elaine, 29, who is expecting the couple's second child, faces an agonising 48-hour wait to find out her test results.

The couple also have an 18-month-old son, Lewis.

A spokesman for the snooker ace said: "Elaine had an early pregnancy scan and something abnormal was detected.

"It could be a tumour, it could be benign and we are hoping it proves to be a cyst.

"They don't have an answer at the moment and doctors hope to be more clear about what they are dealing with in two days."

"Graeme is distraught about this and, before the match, he managed to book a flight home.

"He was persuaded to complete the match because of the responsibility of being the world champion, but his mind was not on the job."

Dott lost to Stephen Lee and in the post-match press conference, the Scot, who grew up in Easterhouse, Glasgow, said: "What has happened is much more important than snooker.

"To be honest, I could not care less about the match.

If I was not the world champion, I would not have played."

This is the second recent blow for the Dotts.

Last month, his former manager, Alex Lambie, who was also Elaine's dad, died from cancer.