Docs ‘ left the breast cancer butcher free to maim for 8 years’
ROGUE surgeon Ian Paterson was able to continue mutilating breast cancer patients for eight years despite concerns about his work, a medical tribunal has heard.
The fresh details emerged three years after Paterson, 62, was convicted of wounding with intent between 1997 and 2011. The Medical Practitioners Tribunal Service was told that serious concerns were raised from 2004.
Mark Goldman and Ian Cunliffe, his former bosses at the Heart of England NHS Foundation Trust ( HEFT), deny failing to stop him.
They face various misconduct charges including failures to share the full history of investigators’ concerns, failing to stop Paterson from undertaking surgery and failing to notify the General Medical Council
( GMC) of concerns.
Yesterday’s preliminary hearing in Manchester heard that a culture of denial had enabled Paterson to perform more than 1,000 unnecessary operations.
In 2010 a botched case was allegedly reported to the GMC for investigation. But the panel took no action after Paterson produced a letter confirming he was already being restricted by his then boss Dr Cunliffe.
Five further reviews were held by GMC Interim Order Panels ( IOPs) before Paterson was suspended in 2012. Former HEFT chief executive Dr Goldman quit in 2010 with a £ 2.7million pension pot, just three months before news emerged of a recall of Paterson’s patients.
Former HEFT medical director Dr Cunliffe is accused of attempting to block a full recall. Mark Sutton QC, defending them, said: “The GMC cannot criticise Mr Goldman for not restricting Mr Paterson’s practices when an IOP didn’t impose an order.”
Paterson, who worked at Solihull Hospital as well as privately for Spire in Birmingham, carried out “experimental mastectomies” where he failed to remove all the tissue. As many as 675 of the 1,207 patients who had the unregulated procedure had died by 2017.
Others had surgery they did not need.
After the trial, which saw him jailed for 20 years, one victim, Patricia Welch, said: “He made no attempt to show remorse.”
Nick Clarke QC, for the tribunal, said yesterday: “In 2004 a number of concerns had already been raised.
“There are failures to inform the trust board of a number of matters.
“We are dealing here with the very harrowing actions of physical trauma inflicted by a surgeon.
“The hearing will be dealing with steps that should have been taken to stop what was happening.” The full tribunal will be held next year.