Lawrence Dallaglio will undergo surgery on his injured hand next week which will rule him out of England's summer tour to Argentina.
Dallaglio had been appointed captain for the trip, more than three years after he resigned from the job following a newspaper expose on his private life.
He was also due to lead England in the non-cap international against the Barbarians next weekend but picked up the injury in Wasps' victory over Harlequins last month.
Dallaglio has revealed that surgery was inevitable, though his surgeon Brian Cohen agreed to delay the procedure until after Wasps' final Zurich Premiership game of the season at Bath this weekend, as they push for a European place.
It is thought he will have six weeks' recuperation before embarking on yet another period of rehabilitation.
Dallaglio, who has only recently returned from a nine-month battle to overcome knee ligament damage that ruled him out of the British Lions Tests against Australia in 2001, has informed England coach Clive Woodward of his plans.
"I told Clive about the situation and it is disappointing, but it's just one of those things that can happen. I just have to work even harder to make sure I get another opportunity to captain my country," he said, already targeting another comeback.
"My next chance of an England cap is against New Zealand on November 9 at Twickenham and it's a great target to have. I can't look forward to the tour any more and so my focus, after trying to get the club into Europe, is the new season.
"Even though I have only just come back from the knee operation, I won't be charging into training because this summer is one of the few chances we have for a break in the build-up to the 2003 World Cup."
Dallaglio added that the decision to undergo surgery now, and rule himself out of the tour, was not taken lightly but he is determined to do all he can to help Wasps qualify for the Heineken Cup.
"I am playing against Bath because my priority is to try and get Wasps into the Heineken Cup and it will be the my last game of the season," he said.
Dallaglio has had to endure a difficult time after injuring his knee a year ago in Wasps' Zurich play-off clash with Bath at Loftus Road. He fought back to be fit for the Lions tour but broke down in only his second game Down Under against New South Wales Waratahs in Sydney.
Knee reconstruction surgery was followed by a nine-month battle for fitness. He made his international comeback as a second-half substitute in England's final Six Nations match against Italy.
And with England resting a number of their stars, the tour to South America was seen as an ideal route back for the No 8. Losing Dallaglio is a massive blow for Woodward, who has opted to travel without the majority of the England players who toured Australia with the Lions last summer.
The captaincy is now likely to revert to Kyran Bracken or Matt Dawson, whichever scrum-half wins the No 9 shirt on tour.
