Melbourne AFL great Jim Stynes is recovering well and in good spirits after surgery to remove five brain tumours, Demons vice-president Don McLardy said on Sunday.

Stynes, 43, was first diagnosed with cancer in the middle of last year and revealed in October the cancer had spread from his back to his brain.

The Demons president and former playing great underwent a six-hour bout of surgery last Wednesday to have the tumours removed, but remarkably by Saturday night was hoping to attend Sunday's Melbourne-Adelaide game at the MCG.

He did not, but McLardy said when he visited Stynes in hospital on Saturday night his friend and colleague was "laughing, smiling, talking about his condition and generally in a great and positive mood".

McLardy said Stynes' condition had improved dramatically from the first 48 hours after the surgery, when he was in a lot of pain, could not speak clearly and his vision was blurred.

But he said Stynes remained upbeat about his chances of making a full recovery.

"Jim is under no illusions about how serious his condition is, but he was born with an unbelievable never-say-die attitude," McLardy told the pre-game lunch.

"Personally, I'm still constantly in awe in the way Jim fights his illness with courage, with openness and with a smile.

"He constantly reminds everyone around him that there are plenty of people around who are battling just as hard and that he's not that special."

Stynes enjoyed one of the most remarkable playing careers in the AFL's history, as the Irishman played 264 games from 1987-98, including a record 244 in succession when he continually defied injury, and won the 1991 Brownlow Medal.

McLardy hoped Stynes' presidency would be remembered for the period the Demons emerged out of the doldrums and became a team renowned for its fighting spirit and refusal to lay down.

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