A YOUNG woman died in a Dublin hospital after a stomach operation to remove two malignant tumours which were found to be non existent, an inquest heard yesterday.
Ms Beatrice Hartnett (30), of St Patrick's Park, Dunboyne, Co Meath, had complained of abdominal pain and was told she required immediate surgery. Doctors, who feared a melanoma removed from her right eye had spread to her bowel, made the decision after a CT scan and other tests.
But when he operated, on November 3rd, 1994, consultant surgeon Mr Enda McDermott found no tumours, the Dublin Coroner's Court was told.
Ms Hartnett's sister Hanna yesterday demanded that the court and the inquest jury determine why her sister had died.
On October 30th, Ms Hanna Hartnett and her family had met a Dr Pele at St Vincent's Hospital, who said Beatrice had two tumours and the cancer she had progressed quickly.
Ms Hartnett added: . . . We were left with the impression that it was a question of weeks rather than months."
After surgery, her sister was "alarming looking in the extreme" but a hospital nurse said everything had gone well and the tumours were gone.
Later that evening, another sister, Jacqueline, noticed Beatrice's body from her shoulder up was swollen. The next day Beatrice had difficulty breathing and her right arm, neck and face were swollen. She was extremely hot. Her brother, Peter, noticed she was unable to vomit. Nursing staff said this was normal after an anaesthetic.
The family met Mr McDermott the following Friday. There were no tumours, he said, but there were several lymph glands, some larger than others. "We then asked, him what happened to Beatrice's tumours . . . but he looked bemused and said he would be seeing Beatrice later on," added Ms Hartnett.
"We later met a Dr O'Reilly and when we told her what Mr McDermott had to say, she was shocked, but stuck to the view that Beatrice had all the symptoms of melanoma cancer," she said.
On Sunday, November 6th, a nurse phoned Beatrice's sister Mary to say Beatrice had been transferred to intensive care.
"The sister went on to that the reason she was in order that they not be alarmed when we came to see Beatrice." But at 12.45 p.m. they got a phone call from Sister Jones to say Beatrice had deteriorated and they should come quickly.
"At 1.20 p.m. I, with my parents, arrived and a Dr Zabar introduced himself in the intensive care unit. He said that he personally felt a post mortem would be necessary. I was utterly stunned and asked him was he saying that Beatrice was dead, to which he nodded and he said `yes'. My father became weak and had to be removed," said Ms Hartnett.
Dr Zabar wanted the family to consent to a post mortem, she said. It was only then they asked how long Beatrice had been dead and he said 10 minutes. At 3 p.m., they were allowed to see Beatrice, who had black bruising marks on her neck and blood marks around her mouth.
Dr Conal McCrory, anaesthetic registrar, told the inquest that, on the Sunday following the operation, a bed was requested in the intensive care unit at 10.45 am.
But the deceased did not arrive there until 12.40 p.m.
She arrived very pale and with no palpable pulse and was already in cardiac arrest. "I never saw the patient alive," he added. He could not explain the delay in the patient's transfer from the ward.
Mr McDermott said the hospital felt terrible about what had happened. Medical staff were certain that Beatrice had cancer.
Mr McDermott added: "Our decision was right but the information was inaccurate. I wrote and spoke with the family and have told them everything I know. This tragedy has caused great upset to everyone and I have spoken honestly and I have done my level best with everyone. I would have liked to have been able to answer all the questions."
Mr McDermott believed the cause of the patient's death was a clot in the lungs.
The Dublin City Coroner, Dr Brian Farrell, adjourned yesterday's inquest until March 12th for a medical report and to hear other witnesses.