Death of Paterson patient preventable - daughter

Jailed breast surgeon Ian Paterson is listed to give evidence at the inquest into the death of former patient Elaine Turbill

A woman has told an inquest she had "a feeling in her stomach" the death of her mother - a patient of disgraced breast surgeon Ian Paterson - could have been prevented.

Elaine Turbill, a married, retired legal secretary from Castle Bromwich, Solihull, was 63 when she died of breast cancer in 2017.

Former consultant surgeon Paterson is serving a 20-year jail sentence after being convicted of multiple counts of wounding linked to surgeries on breast cancer patients.

Mrs Turbill's case is the focus of the second of 62 inquests to be held at Birmingham and Solihull Coroner's Court looking at whether his patients died an unnatural death.

At the hearing, evidence from her daughter Gemma Turbill, read by Judge Richard Foster, described how she gave up work to care for her mother.

Ms Turbill, who was not in court, said her mother worked as a secretary for probation services until early retirement forced by the cancer.

She said her mother had loved the "simple things in life", and had a smile that "lit up the room".

Although sometimes frustrated during her illness, Elaine Turbill was always hopeful a cure would be found, but her cancer progressed from her breast - on which she had surgery - to her bones, liver and brain, her daughter explained.

The inquest of Chloe Nikitas, 43, another patient of Ian Paterson, has been adjourned to a later date

The court heard that Ms Turbill gave up work to care for her sickening mother full-time.

"She needed assistance with a wheelchair. I washed and dressed her, took her to the toilet among other things," she said.

"There were some days that she didn’t know who I was. Her death is still very painful for me."

The inquest is looking into the breast surgery she had, prior to the cancer's progression.

When examined in 2010, Elaine Turbill had 20% of her breast tissue left behind by Paterson under a so-called cleavage-sparing mastectomy.

Her daughter told the court: "I have a feeling in my stomach that [my mother's death] could have been prevented."

'Tissue left behind'

The inquest heard on Tuesday morning from Balapathiran Balasubramanian, a surgeon who worked with Paterson and described him as abrupt and argumentative.

He told the court he had believed Paterson in 2009 when he told him he only performed "cleavage-sparing mastectomies" on a small number of patients, but by 2010 no longer held that view of his colleague.

Mr Balasubramanian added he could not understand why any breast tissue would be left behind, because the idea was to remove as much as possible given the nature of cancer.

He said Paterson was able to perform full mastectomies and that the procedure was not technically difficult.

Paterson was employed by the Heart of England NHS Foundation Trust and practised in the independent sector at Spire Parkway and Spire Little Aston.

He is listed to give evidence on Wednesday and Thursday but refused to attend the court last week, claiming proceedings were biased.

The first inquest, considering the death of Chloe Nikitas, 43, was adjourned on 24 October to a date yet to be set.

Mrs Turbill's inquest continues.