Paterson: 'Patient death may be wrongly recorded'

A patient of jailed surgeon Ian Paterson who died might have had the wrong cause of death recorded, an inquest has heard.

Winifred Worrall, from Shirley in Solihull, had grade three cancer in her left breast when she died on 30 July 2001 aged 85, with her recorded cause of death as carcinomatosis and breast carcinoma.

However, disgraced medic Paterson, who had performed a mastectomy on her, told Ms Worrall's inquest "she had a long history of cardiac disease", but it was not recorded on her death certificate.

"She definitely had carcinomatosis, but I'm concerned that's not the cause of death," Paterson told the hearing, sitting in Birmingham.

Paterson was jailed for 15 years, later extended to 20 years, in 2017, after being convicted of wounding patients with botched and unnecessary operations, but will be eligible for release in 2027.

Ms Worrall was one of 63 women who were treated for breast cancer by him and whose deaths are now being investigated.

Carcinomatosis is a condition in which multiple carcinomas develop simultaneously, usually after spreading from a primary source.

Paterson said he did not believe Ms Worrall had died of carcinomatosis and breast carcinoma, as two letters addressed to her GP by consultants in the weeks before she died made no reference to her being terminally ill.

"She had a long history of cardiac disease and it was not on her death certificate," he said.

"It could have been a cardiac event and breast cancer should have been down as entry two [for cause of death]."

Paterson made a similar claim during the inquest of Elaine Morris, whose cause of death he also believed was incorrectly recorded.

Ms Morris had also had a recorded cause of death as carcinomatosis and breast carcinoma.

Paterson told Ms Morris's inquest he was concerned she had died after an opiate overdose she received during hospice care.

However, two oncologists acting as experts to the inquests disagreed with Paterson's claim as she had only been given "entry level doses" of two opioids for pain relief.

This led Judge Richard Foster, the coroner for the Paterson inquests, to reject Paterson's theory she had died as a result of the overdose.

While other inquests are determining whether Paterson's treatment of them led to their unnatural deaths Briony Ballard, counsel to this hearing, said it was not linking Ms Worrall's death to Paterson's treatment, but was instead looking at criticisms of the care he gave her.

One of the concerns was that Ms Worrall should have undergone a diagnostic ultrasound as well as the mammogram that was performed on her.

Paterson agreed the 85-year-old should have had an ultrasound, given her age and the "worrying new symptom" she was presenting with - nipple inversion and discharge.

"I don't think her assessment was complete enough in 1998 to assert there was no problem," he said.

Paterson said an ultrasound should have been carried out by the consultant radiologist, Dr Kaushik Bhatt.

The inquests continue.

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