Nepalese legend Apa Sherpa broke his own record of climbing Mt Everest the most when he scaled the peak for the 15th time Tuesday.

Sherpa, 45, who had three years ago announced his intention to hang up his boots but persevered still, reached the 8,848-metre high peak early morning as a member of the Everest Climbing For a Cure Expedition 2005.

His achievement was reported by mountaineering website Everest News, Where but is yet to be announced by Nepal's tourism ministry.

Four American friends - Chuck Huss, Dan Smith, Rob Chang and John Gray - had come together to form the Everest Climbing For a Cure Expedition, which is intended to highlight how a healthy diet, exercises and judicious healthcare can prevent cancer.

The disease, according to the American Cancer Society, kills more people under 85 in the US than heart disease.

Sherpa was the guide of the expedition and the first to reach the summit.

He began his mountaineering career in 1990 by conquering Cho-Oyu at 8,201 metres and has received three letters of appreciation from the royal family of Nepal for his feats.

Sherpa first climbed Mt Everest in 1990 with a New Zealand expedition.

The small, wiry and soft-spoken Sherpa is regarded as one of the highest paid Nepalese guides as well as the luckiest mountaineer alive.