Thousands of Brits had ‘organs removed unnecessarily' while cancers were missed in major hospital errors, NHS says

The Sun

25-07-2025

THOUSANDS of breast cancer patients may have had unnecessary mastectomies or had their cancer missed, a major investigation into a hospital trust has found.
The County Durham and Darlington NHS Foundation Trust said it was "truly sorry" after it was revealed that some women under its care had "more extensive surgery than was clinically necessary at the time".
4
4
The probe also found that some patients' tumours were missed after they received the wrong kind of biopsy.
Others weren't offered chemotherapy or had lymph nodes removed when it wasn't clinically necessary.
The review has so far identified 200 cases where errors in care might have occurred.
But the trust said thousands of cases dating back to 2019 could come to light and that a number of deaths were also being looked into, according to the BBC.
Patients affected mainly received care at the University Hospital of North Durham, one of the hospitals the trust operates.
Kathryn Burn, executive director of nursing, said: 'We know that some patients have not received the standard of care that we would want for them, or that they deserve.
"We have identified areas where improvement was needed – including how surgical decisions were made, how our multidisciplinary teams worked and where some outdated practices were still in use.
'For some patients, this may have resulted in more extensive surgery than was clinically necessary at the time.
"We fully recognise how distressing this is to hear, and we are truly sorry."
Kathryn said changes were already being made to improve breast cancer care in the trust's hospitals.
Jessie J breaks down in tears in heartbreaking hospital video as she has surgery after breast cancer diagnosis
This includes appointing two new consultant breast surgeons and investing in more modern equipment.
County Durham and Darlington NHS Foundation Trust launched a review into its breast cancer care services in February 2025 after "a patient safety incident", it said in a statement published on its website.
It also commissioned an external review conducted by the Royal College of Surgeons (RCS).
This followed a Northern Cancer Alliance peer review completed between April and June 2024, which suggested the trust was "an outlier in some aspects of breast care delivery".
4
The RCS team visited hospitals in January this year and published their report in April.
It revealed that some patients had mastectomies that may not have been necessary.
Some received the wrong kind of biopsy - procedures that check if a tumour is cancerous.
In one case, RCS said clinical records showed this led to "a small breast cancer" being missed and "subsequent delays in diagnosis and treatment".
The report also identified incidents where chemotherapy should have been offered to patients when it should have and "there was no documented reasons in the surgical or multidisciplinary team notes as to why it was not received".
In addition, some patients had surgery to remove lymph nodes when not clinically necessary.
The RCS made 21 recommendations for improvements in its report.
The trust also conducted its own "look back exercise" into breast cancer care at its hospitals, which is still ongoing.
What are the signs of breast cancer?
BREAST cancer is the most common type of cancer in the UK.
The majority of women who get it are over 50, but younger women and, in rare cases, men can also get breast cancer.
If it's treated early enough, breast cancer can be prevented from spreading to other parts of the body.
Breast cancer can have a number of symptoms, but the first noticeable symptom is usually a lump or area of thickened breast tissue.
Most breast lumps aren't cancerous, but it's always best to have them checked by your doctor. You should also speak to your GP if you notice any of the following:
a change in the size or shape of one or both breasts
discharge from either of your nipples (which may be streaked with blood)
a lump or swelling in either of your armpits
dimpling on the skin of your breasts
a rash on or around your nipple
a change in the appearance of your nipple, such as becoming sunken into your breast
Source: NHS
It found "two cases in which patients were initially discharged from the service following a diagnostic test but later re-represented with cancer that was missed on the first occasion".
It also flagged instances of "excessive surgery, unnecessary invasive surgery and a failure to consider all options, including breast
reconstruction".
Areas where improvements were needed included how surgical decisions were made and ending the use of outdated practices, the trust said.
Kathryn said: 'Over the past four months, we have been reviewing the care of patients who had surgery through the breast service in 2024.
"Where we have concerns about the care a patient received, we are contacting them directly and personally about this.
"Patients whose care has been reviewed and found to be appropriate are also being contacted to provide reassurance.
"Since February, we have reviewed – with the support of external experts – 123 individual cases of care.
"We have spoken with more than 80 patients to openly discuss elements which could have been done differently and been improved.
'This work is not yet complete, and we continue to review patient notes.
"We have also set up a patient call line and email address where any patients who have questions or concerns about their care can get in touch with us to share their experience.'
4
Kathryn told the BBC that the trust was looking at the investigation"from a clinical urgency perspective" and it had made "a lot of improvements".
"We are looking back systematically through clinical priority where we feel there might be more risk to our patients," she said.
She added: 'We are incredibly grateful to the patients who have taken the time to speak with us, to share their experiences and to raise concerns.
"Listening to these experiences has been a vital part of learning and improving.
'The review is still ongoing and we remain committed to speaking directly with any patient whose care warrants follow-up.