THE NUMBER of patients in the northeast whose cancer was misdiagnosed as a result of tumours not being spotted on initial chest X-rays rose to six yesterday.
A risk manager with the Health Service Executive in the region confirmed during a meeting with Louth Oireachtas members that two other patients in addition to four already known about had been misdiagnosed.
The cases were said to have come to light as part of a review of the work of a locum consultant radiologist who worked at hospitals in Drogheda and Navan between August 2006 and August 2007.
In all some 6,000 chest X-rays and 70 CT scans reported on by the consultant are now being reviewed.
Fergus O’Dowd, a Fine Gael TD for Louth who was at yesterday’s meeting, said he was informed the two additional cases were known about 10 days before letters were issued to some 4,600 patients about the review last week.
He said he questioned why only four cases had been mentioned by Minister for Health Mary Harney in the Dáil last week when details of the review were outlined, and was told the additional two cases hadn’t been mentioned at that stage because their families hadn’t been contacted.
The initial four cases in which lung cancer patients were misdiagnosed came to light late last year, Ms Harney had told the Dáil. All have since died.
Mr O’Dowd said there was a lot of worry and concern now in the northeast region about the review. He called on the HSE to get results of the review back to patients as quickly as possible.
The HSE said last night all patients would be contacted by letter as soon as their chest X-ray/CT scan had been reviewed.
Asked about the additional two cases of misdiagnosis it said: “While we appreciate that information regarding further cases may come into the public domain as we communicate with families throughout this process the HSE will not report any further information on specific details of the reviews until the entire review process has concluded.”
Meanwhile, Tomás Sharkey, a Sinn Féin councillor in Louth, called for a public inquiry to look at why the HSE didn’t begin the review as soon as the first misdiagnosed cases came to light last November and into the blunder last week when some letters informing patients of the review were sent to the wrong people.
He knows the family of one of the first four people to be misdiagnosed and they are due to appear on tonight’s Prime Time. “A man in my constituency was X-rayed in May 2007 and he was sent home after being told that all was okay. On November 14th, 2007, he was readmitted to hospital and X-rayed. This time the radiologist on duty immediately recognised cancer on the X-ray. That new radiologist checked the May 2007 X-ray result and realised that it was clearly shown on that one also,” he said.
The man died in January.