Women 'traumatised' By Breast Cancer Treatment At Nhs Trust

Breast crab patients suffered unnecessary mastectomies, delayed diagnoses and a deficiency of compassionate attraction astatine an NHS Trust successful north-east England, nan BBC has learned.

More than 200 cases are now being investigated astatine County Durham and Darlington Foundation Trust (CDDFT) - 43 of these are reported to impact important harm. One decease is besides being examined.

Women person told america they were near emotion "butchered" by surgery, while a starring master says that what went connected astatine nan spot was "a textbook illustration of really not to transportation retired bosom crab management".

In addition, we discovered that astir £6m was paid retired by nan spot to clinics tally privately by its main bosom crab surgeon.

In total, aesculapian records of astir 1,600 patients treated since 2023 are now being examined pursuing concerns astir nan work nan spot offered.

An independent reappraisal into nan moving of CDDFT, carried retired by governance master Mary Aubrey, has besides been published this week. Among nan shortcomings it highlights are:

• Outdated objective practices that did not meet guidance connected champion practice, and led to delayed test and cancers being missed
• A precocious complaint of "re-excision" (repeated procedures) and debased uptake of bosom reconstruction instantly aft mastectomy
• Operations that whitethorn person been carried retired "too quickly"
• Outsourcing of galore diligent appointments successful a mode that created a "conflict of interests" and "posed a consequence to objective standards"

The Aubrey reappraisal says "persistent concerns" had been raised since 2012, erstwhile nan spot mislaid its position arsenic a training centre for bosom room services. In nan pursuing years, it "failed to enactment connected repeated warnings and evidence... which allowed unsafe and outdated practices to persist".

CDDFT has apologised to "women and their families who person been harmed because of our substandard care", and it admits that "over galore years, informing signs were many times missed aliases not acted upon".

Kate Driver, who is 31 and from Chester-le-Street, is 1 of respective women we said to who had been treated by CDDFT's bosom crab service.

In nan run-up to Christmas 2023, Kate recovered a lump successful her correct breast. She was referred by her GP to nan spot for an assignment pinch a specialist.

Although this was an NHS appointment, it took spot astatine a backstage session held astatine Spire Hospital successful Washington, wherever she was seen by Mr Amir Bhatti, nan trust's objective lead for bosom surgery.

He carried retired a trial known arsenic a good needle aspiration (FNA), during which a sample of cells is extracted to trial for cancer.

What she did not cognize was that FNA tests are not considered champion believe for bosom biopsies, because they tin nutrient inadequate samples, and lead to nan consequence of missed, incomplete aliases delayed diagnoses.

Kate's trial results were expected to beryllium provided wrong 48 hours, according to nan trust's website. In fact, nan trial was inconclusive, and Kate had to hold respective weeks earlier she was yet told she had bosom cancer.

"Waiting truthful agelong and having to pursuit everything up made it a 100 times worse than it needed to be," says Kate. "I couldn't eat, I couldn't sleep. It conscionable made it felt for illustration no-one really cared, no-one was taking it seriously."

More bad news was to follow. Kate was told she would request a mastectomy, but advised that because of her peculiar type of cancer, she should not person bosom reconstruction astatine nan aforesaid time.

"They were going to wholly region my correct bosom and time off maine pinch nothing, conscionable a large scar," she says.

Kate sought a 2nd sentiment astatine different spot successful Newcastle, wherever she was told location was nary logic why she should not person a bosom reconstruction instantly aft her mastectomy. She chose to beryllium treated location instead.

The County Durham and Darlington NHS spot has apologised to Kate saying her attraction "fell beneath acceptable standards".

She made a general title astir her curen by Mr Bhatti, which she says near her traumatised.

Spire Healthcare says that curen and follow-up attraction of nan clinic's patients was nan work of CDDFT.

Mr Bhatti told america he was incapable to remark connected circumstantial cases because of diligent confidentiality and urged patients to interaction nan spot directly.

Research from 2024 shows that almost half of women diagnosed pinch bosom crab astatine nan County Durham spot had a mastectomy. According to 2022 parliamentary evidence fixed by nan kindness Breast Cancer Now, nan UK mean was astir 27%.

In addition, only 7.5% of mastectomies carried retired by CDDFT were followed by contiguous bosom reconstruction - acold beneath nan nationalist recommended minimum of 25%.

Dawn Gillott is different breast-cancer diligent whose curen astatine nan spot is being investigated.

She told america she had been fixed nary action isolated from mastectomy: "I felt for illustration I didn't person a choice. It was 'you're having this and that's each location is to it'."

She says she has been near pinch a monolithic scar which has near her emotion "butchered".

"I can't look successful nan reflector astatine myself aft having a bath because nan scar is conscionable a changeless reminder that it's horrific."

The cognition has besides near Dawn successful changeless symptom crossed her thorax and nether her armpit.

"Was my mastectomy necessary?" she reflects. "Maybe it wasn't. Maybe I could person had a lumpectomy."

Between 2022 and 2024, much than half of nan patients referred to CDDFT for bosom crab tests aliases urgent investigation were - for illustration Kate - initially sent to 1 of 2 backstage two-week-wait clinics paid for by nan NHS.

Amir Bhatti ran these clinics, and he was besides a head of 1 of nan companies down them - Durham Surgical Services.

The companies were paid connected a per-patient, aliases per-appointment, ground - a set-up, nan BBC has found, that costs nan spot astir £6m betwixt 2019 and April 2025.

This statement was considered "overly generous" by immoderate staff, who were interviewed for a Royal College of Surgeons (RCS) study into curen and attraction astatine nan trust, published earlier this year.

The clinics mostly worked connected an out-of-hours basis, seeing patients successful nan evenings and astatine weekends.

The RCS raised concerns astir nan precocious turnover of appointments, commenting that it was not different for 1 session "to tally connected until 23:30".

"Obviously location was an inducement to spot arsenic galore group arsenic imaginable because of nan per capita payment," says Prof Ian Fentiman, emeritus professor of surgical oncology astatine King's College London.

The BBC has besides heard allegations from bosom crab patients astir a deficiency of compassion and attraction astatine nan trust, successful some its clinics and its hospitals.

Catriona McEvoy, from Stanley successful County Durham, told america she felt women were being treated by nan doctors "like a conveyor belt".

She says she was shocked by nan consequence from 1 expert during a infirmary appointment, aft she told him her bosom had go infected pursuing a lumpectomy.

She says that, without speaking to her, offering her symptom killers aliases asking her permission, nan expert conscionable "flicked his surgical knife" and trim her bosom to drain nan infected area.

"There was nary dignity successful immoderate of it," says Catriona.

We contacted nan expert who Catriona says performed this procedure, but he declined to comment. The spot has told nan BBC he is now nether supervision.

Serious concerns astir nan velocity and value of bosom room were identified successful nan Royal College of Surgeons' report. "Some surgical procedures appeared to beryllium undertaken pinch awesome swiftness," it says.

These included a mastectomy and lymph node process performed successful 28 minutes, and an excision of benign thickened bosom insubstantial successful 10 minutes, "which nan reappraisal squad considered to person been unnecessary".

The RCS besides noted "a very precocious re-excision rate" - successful different words, repetition operations.

The RCS reappraisal was "an appalling indictment" of a "third-rate" bosom session service, according to Prof Fentiman. "In each way, things were being done wrongly," he says.

It followed 2 different captious reports into nan bosom attraction work astatine CDDFT.

In 2019, an soul NHS Getting It Right First Time (GIRFT) study highlighted aggregate concerns astir bosom room astatine CDDFT. The trust's executive head of nursing, Kathryn Burn told nan BBC that nan concerns successful nan study were discussed, but not overmuch action was taken.

The GIRFT report, on pinch a 2024 reappraisal carried retired by a squad of experts astatine nan Northern Cancer Alliance, was not made nationalist until nan BBC made a Freedom of Information petition .

"The important point to do... is to opportunity really profoundly sorry I am, that women who person been cared for successful our bosom services person been fto down by us," says Steve Russell, who was appointed main executive of County Durham and Darlington Foundation Trust successful September 2025.

"I tin only ideate nan distress and symptom that has been caused to nan individuals and their families and nan nonaccomplishment of spot and assurance successful america arsenic an organisation."

"It is existent to opportunity that location were a number of missed opportunities. It was not bully capable and it is not bully capable that we were excessively slow to enactment connected nan accusation that was there."

He adds: "I'm wished to make changes truthful that it doesn't hap again."

As good arsenic a caller main executive, a caller interim chair of nan spot has been appointed. NHS England told america it will "continue to support nan caller activity and partner organisations to make nan improvements required".

In a statement, Mr Bhatti said he had been disappointed not to beryllium fixed nan opportunity to remark connected nan draught findings of nan RCS report. He told nan BBC it contained "some actual inaccuracies" which he believed led to "erroneous conclusions".

He besides told america that "serving nan champion interests of each our patients is of paramount importance" and that, erstwhile things spell wrong, "we study from this and make nan basal changes and improvements".

Earlier this year, nan spot stopped utilizing nan out-of-hours clinics tally by Mr Bhatti. He is nary longer objective lead of nan bosom service, treating bosom crab patients aliases performing surgery, while investigations continue.

In a connection to nan BBC, his spokesperson said: "Mr Bhatti has been raising concerns astir nan adequacy of instrumentality successful nan bosom crab section since May 2021. He looks guardant to moving pinch each those progressive successful immoderate measurement required."