Dave Callam, the Scotland and Edinburgh forward, last night vowed to return to top-flight rugby after career-threatening major surgery.

The 25-year-old revealed that he needed an operation to remove a cyst from his hip bone and will be sidelined for the rest of the season.

While distraught when medics told him how serious his condition was, he admitted relief that the problem had been identified in time to save his career with the correct treatment.

"I underwent a routine scan after being injured and they discovered a bone cyst in my hip," Callam said. "We were very lucky that we found it. It is a rare thing to find in a young sportsman. I had a biopsy to ascertain the nature of the cyst and that was why there was almost a two-month wait to determine the next step.

"Initially I was devastated, but fortunately we found out when we did because it could have had serious repercussions for my rugby career."

Callam went under the knife at the Spire Murrayfield Hospital and he added: "I got looked after fantastically well. The surgeons did a superb job and hopefully I will be back playing again next season. I've got eight weeks on crutches and after four months I should be able to start training again. Then it will be a case of building myself up from there."

Andy Robinson, the Edinburgh coach, added: "It was a very unfortunate injury and we all feel for Dave at this time. Obviously the recovery period now is very important for him. We are hoping he comes back stronger than ever in time for next season."