Barnsley woman's 'horror' after unnecessary mastectomy

Mrs Young was misdiagnosed after a routine screening appointment

A woman who had a mastectomy after being wrongly diagnosed with invasive breast cancer has spoken of her "horror and anguish".

Hospice nurse Brenda Young, 65, of Barnsley, South Yorkshire, then had to wait nine months for reconstructive surgery due to the Covid-19 pandemic.

She was misdiagnosed after a routine screening appointment and biopsy in February 2020 at Barnsley Hospital.

Barnsley Hospital NHS Trust has written to Mrs Young to apologise.

The letter came after she instructed medical negligence law firm Irwin Mitchell to investigate her care.

Mrs Young, of Hoylandswaine, had her right breast removed within weeks of being told she had cancer.

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The following month, in March 2020, she was told it had been a mistake, but due to Covid restrictions she had to wait until November to undergo reconstructive surgery.

She said: "I was devastated and extremely worried when I received my diagnosis.

Barnsley Hospital NHS Trust has apologised and said it has identified "actions and learning"

"I was later advised that the samples taken showed that I didn't have breast cancer at all. However, by this time it was too late and I had already undergone the mastectomy."

Mrs Young added: "I felt frustrated that I had undergone removal of my breast for a cancer that I didn't have, but then had to wait so long for reconstruction.

"I was told about the fact that I didn't have cancer around the time that the first lockdown started and, therefore, had to cope with my horror and anguish alone. This was incredibly difficult."

A serious incident report by the trust found there was "no evidence" of invasive cancer, and the doctor did not seek a second opinion when analysing test results before her diagnosis.

Jackie Murphy, Barnsley Hospital NHS Trust's director of nursing and quality, wrote: "On behalf of the trust I would like to apologise that on this occasion the standard of care you received fell below that which you had a right to expect."

She said the trust had identified "actions and learning" which would be monitored through its governance procedures.