THE DESPERATE CANCER VICTIM

They should have started my prostate treatment within a month, but the operation just kept being delayed

PIERRE BÜTIKOFER ended up paying £7,000 for a vital prostate cancer operation after fearing he faced months waiting on the NHS.

Diagnosed last year with an aggressive form of the disease, his NHS consultant said he needed treatment ‘very urgently’.

But Pierre, 65, whose own father died of prostate cancer aged 71, said the slot for his prostate removal kept slipping. ‘First they said it was going to be next week, then it was in six weeks’ time, then eight weeks,’ he recalled.

‘The time was moving out and out, and as it was autumn my wife and I were beginning to worry that the hospital was getting busier and busier. We could see the operation would probably not happen until March or April.’

That raised their concerns that the disease could spread in the meantime – with potentially fatal results.

Under a key Government pledge, patients diagnosed with cancer should start treatment within 31 days of the ‘decision to treat’.

Deeply concerned, Pierre, right, decided to go private, meaning he only had to wait about two weeks. He and his wife Sarah, 50, used their savings but Pierre also had to borrow money from his sister.

The operation, which cost £6,900, was a success. Tests indicate he remains cancer-free.

Pierre, a photographer from Aylmerton, Norfolk, said: ‘I’m absolutely convinced it was the right decision for my health.’

Norfolk & Norwich Hospital medical director Peter Chapman said: ‘The vast majority of cancer patients receive their surgery in less than 31 days.’