Twinty weemen had breists remuved unnecessarily durin NHS cancer care

Twinty weemen had thair breists remuved unnecessarily whiles gettin treitit for cancer at an NHS trust in the north-east o Ingland.

The County Durham an Darlington foundation trust (CDDFT) tauld the BBC that the weemen wur amang hunners o patients that cam to hairm durin thair treitment at its breist unit.

The admission cam efter the BBC reportit last year that mair than 200 patients wur fund to hae suffered hairm at the CDDFT.

The broadcaster reportit that the National Crime Agency wis workin wi Durham polis to investigate allegations by umwhile patients an determine gin ony criminal offences had taen place.

Steve Russell, wha wis appointit chief executive o CDDFT last year, said: We are deeply sorry to the weemen an families wha hae been haimed an let doun by failins in our breist services.

We recognise the profound impact this has had an hae been clear that there wur opportunities whan, as a trust, we shud hae listenit mair carefully an actit sooner.

Significant changes hae syne been made to the breist service an are bringin improvements for patients.

Alangside this, the look-back continues to review past care, identify patients wha may hae experienced hairm an mak sure they receive appropriate information an support.

On September 24, our trust board will meet in public to consider the future scope an timeframe o the look-back. Nae final decision has been made an it wad no be richt to pre-empt the board discussion.

We will continue to be open aboot this work an will provide a further update followin the meetin.

Our dedicatit support line remains available to onybody wi concerns aboot thair breist care on 0191 333 2126 or at cddft.breastservices@nhs.net.

The trust has been contactit for additional comment.

The CDDFT is conductin an internal review o breist cancer cases atween Januar 2023 an Februar 2025, as weel as o 640 umwhile patients wha contactit a special helpline.

The BBC reportit that o 514 cases reviewit by the trust sae far, 315 patients had been fund to hae suffered hairm, includin 77 wha wur significantly haimed. Ane patient is kent to hae died.

Russell tauld the BBC that in some cases cancer wis missed an subsequently spread.

Ane weeman wha had an unnecessary mastectomy, referrit to as Jo, tauld BBC Radio 4 Today programme: They shud hae done further screenin an biopsies, an that wad hae shown that aw the ither areas wur benign. An actually, there wis very sma cancer in a muckle breist. An actually, I didna need a mastectomy at aw.

I jist wis in total shock, sat at the tap o the stairs wi the dugs, thinkin, hae I really heard whit I hae jist heard? It wis unbelievable, devastatin, she said.

The fact that this pairt o your body is nou gane, an ye ken pairt o whit maks ye a weeman gane. It jist maks ye no your hale sel, really. To find oot that that wisna necessary is absolutely horrendous.

Denise Howarth, 51, o Consett, County Durham, wis diagnosit wi stage ane cancer in her left breist in Februar 2023.

She had a lumpectomy an lymph nodes remuved, but at a follow-up review wis tauld she still needit a mastectomy.

Howarth, a mither o twa bein representit by Hudgell Solicitors, underwent the mastectomy, followit by chemotherapy an radiology treitment.

In September last year, she wis contactit by the CDDFT an tauld the mastectomy hadna been needit.

They cawed me at hame to say I needna hae had my breist remuved an it wis somethin whilk really knockit me aff my feet, I wis completely shockit, she said.

I had had an awfu year awready as I had lost twa close relatives an my dad wis really puirly sae I had never really had muckle time efter my mastectomy to think o mysel an my recovery.

I had jist reachit a pynt whaur I wis beginnin to focus on mysel an to leuk forrit, an syne this news cam like a bolt oot o the blue.

Ye pit your trust in professional fowk. To be sae badly let doun is somethin I will never be able to come to terms wi.

On the trust response, Howarth said: An apology is no enough. This is life-changin.

I hae lost sae muckle confidence. I feel robbit o the person I wis afore. As a weeman, losin a breist has a huge impact on ye.

I fear I will never be the same person again, altho I hae tried to be strang.

Rachel O Connor, pairt o the medical negligence team at Hudgell Solicitors, is cawin for a public inquiry.

We are currently advisin a nummer o weemen wha hae had surgeries they hae syne been tauld wur no needit, she said.

Breist cancer services at hospitals shud be places whaur patients hae the reassurance o exceptional care an support, frae clinics an scans to surgeries an treitments.

Sadly, at County Durham an Darlington NHS foundation trust, this has no been the case for mony years, as deep-rootit, systematic failins hae led to weemen sufferin serious hairm.