Melbourne club legend Jim Stynes is hopeful he is through the worst of his battle with cancer after undergoing a second bout of surgery.

Stynes stood down from the Demons' presidency last week while he attempts to overcome the illness.

He initially had surgery late last week before watching via television from his hospital bed as an inspired Melbourne downed West Coast at the MCG on Saturday, dedicating the victory to Stynes.

"It's been a challenging few days but we're hoping the worst is behind us," Stynes said in an email to friends, extracts of which were broadcast by the Nine Network on Wednesday.

"Unexpectedly I went back into surgery on Sunday to remove some suspect cells as a bit of insurance.

"This has postponed recovery by a couple of days but the main thing is the second operation was also a success."

Stynes made a plea in the email not to be plied with questions about his recovery.

"As you can imagine answering the same questions takes a bit of energy, but I assure you I'll let you know when I receive any results as we begin our journey to eliminate the cancer for good," he said.

He said watching Melbourne's win, just the second of the season for the bottom-placed club, buoyed his spirits.

"It was great to see the Dees win, not that they had much choice with all that media pressure," he joked.

Stynes broke the news of his cancer battle publicly last Wednesday, announcing he would stand down, with vice-chairman Don McLardy acting in the role in his absence.

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