Cancer test error woman demands answers
‘Nobody from the hospital has said sorry’ over failure
A WOMAN who was incorrectly told she didn’t have a genetic mutation that can lead to cancer wants those who made the mistake be held accountable.
The error was only discovered last month after doctors treating her for a recent cancer diagnosis suggested she have a test to see if she had inherited a harmful gene mutation.
But she told them she already had the test done – at Our Lady’s Hospital in Crumlin, Dublin, in November 2009 – and that she’d been told in a letter in January 2010 she had tested negative.
Yet when doctors then asked for the 2009 test results report, they were informed she had in fact had a positive result in the test, know as a BRCA.
Health Minister Simon Harris has said the case was caused by ‘human error in transcribing the result of the test’.
Clinical geneticist Professor Andrew Green, who runs Crumlin’s Department of Clinical Genetics, said, in a November 8 letter to the doctors: ‘My letter of January 2010 incorrectly stated this breast cancer gene was normal. I am very sorry this has happened and that she developed ovarian cancer.’
The Crumlin hospital has since claimed the error was caused by a ‘transcription error’. In a statement, it said: ‘The Children’s Hospital Group apologises to the woman at the centre of this transcription error and regrets the series of events that led to her current difficult situation.
‘All facts in this incident currently point to the fact that a transcription error of a genetic test result occurred.
‘This is currently considered to be an isolated incident caused by human error.
‘This fact has been communicated to the woman involved through her treating clinician.’
However, the woman’s lawyer, Caoimhe Haughey, has questioned how anybody could mistake a two-page report that ‘screamed’ positive for a negative result.
She has demanded a full investigation and that those responsible for the error be held to account.
‘Nobody from the hospital has explained to my client how on Earth this mistake was caused by a transcription error,’ Ms Haughey told the Irish Daily Mail last night.
‘How on Earth anybody could make this mistake is beyond us.
‘The report very clearly, over two pages, practically screamed a positive result. Nobody from the hospital has apologised to my client, despite their statement. The fact that they are trying to give people the impression that they are dealing directly with my client is just simply not the case.’
And she added: ‘There needs to be a full investigation and we need to know who made the mistake and whether or not they will be held accountable.
‘The health service does not have a great track record of holding its own accountable for the mistakes they make.
‘So, I won’t be holding my breath,’ she added.
When asked to explain how a ‘transcription error’ occurred, the Crumlin hospital declined to do so. It also declined to explain when it plans to apologise to the woman involved.
Instead, a hospital spokesperson said: ‘Our Lady’s Children’s Hospital, Crumlin (OLCHC) cannot discuss individual patient cases.
‘The hospital can confirm it is firstly prioritising a review of 335 positive BRCA tests to ensure that the correspondence about the positive BRCA result was communicated correctly to the referring clinician.
‘The hospital will then review the negative BRCA tests.
‘We want to offer reassurance to all patients who have undergone BRCA testing at OLCHC that there is no concern regarding the accuracy of the result of the BRCA test.’
On Sunday, the Irish edition of The Sunday Times quoted the woman at the centre of this BRCA test result error as saying: ‘I was denied the opportunity for intervention and preventative treatment for almost ten years, which is going to have life-altering and permanent consequences for me.’
Hollywood star Angelina Jolie famously opted for preventative surgery to remove her breasts and ovaries after discovering she had inherited the BRCA1 gene mutation from her late mother.
Genetic ovarian cancers are notoriously difficult to treat, with only 30% of patients still alive five years after diagnosis. This is because by the time most are diagnosed, cancer has already spread to several areas.
People concerned about their own results can contact a dedicated genetics helpline the Crumlin hospital has set up.
The number is 01 4096219, Monday-Friday, 9am-5.30pm.
‘Needs to be full investigation’