Myles Bradbury: Addenbrooke's cancer unit investigated

Myles Bradbury worked as a specialist at Addenbrooke's paediatric oncology unit

An independent investigation is to take place into a hospital unit where a paedophile doctor worked as a children's cancer specialist.

Myles Bradbury, 41, was jailed for 22 years, after admitting abusing 18 victims at Addenbrooke's Hospital, in Cambridge, between 2009 and 2013.

The investigation will look at how the paediatric oncology unit was run and how Bradbury was able to go undetected.

An external company has been brought in to carry out the investigation.

Before his sentencing in December, the former consultant, from Herringswell, Suffolk, admitted 25 offences, including sexual assault, voyeurism and possessing more than 16,000 indecent images.

A Cambridge Crown Court judge said Bradbury had carried out a "prolonged, carefully planned, cruel and persistent campaign of abuse".

An external company will investigate the running of the cancer unit where Myles Bradbury worked

In 800 letters sent to parents and guardians of those who were treated by Bradbury, the hospital trust's chief executive, Dr Keith McNeil, said an external company, Verita, would be in charge of the investigation.

Dr McNeil said the inquiry would look at "internal governance in the hospital" and not individual patients' care.

He said Verita would like to hear from "any patients, their family or carers who may have mentioned a concern about Dr Bradbury to a member of staff, (or were dissuaded from doing so) at any point during their treatment".

Dr McNeil's letter said the purpose of the investigation was to establish "how Dr Bradbury was able to carry out his activities, how his offending behaviour went undetected and what lessons there are to be learnt for this service, the trust and the wider NHS".