Hospital trust slammed by watchdog after woman dies while waiting almost three months for cancer treatment
Woman dies after she was forced to wait months for cancer treatment
- A hospital trust has been instructed to enhance its cancer services following the death of a 67-year-old woman whose treatment was delayed.
- Mrs S, a retired history teacher, died of terminal ovarian cancer three months after her initial GP visit, due to significant delays in diagnosis and treatment at Broomfield Hospital.
- The Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman (PHSO) found that there was a delay in diagnosing and treating her cancer, and she was unsafely discharged from hospital.
- Her chemotherapy, which could have extended her life, was scheduled too late, rendering her unfit for treatment, and palliative care was also delayed.
- Mid and South Essex NHS Foundation Trust has apologised, acknowledging issues with diagnostic services and committing to an integrated improvement plan to speed up treatment times, as it currently fails to meet national cancer wait time targets.