Now her mother is feeling well: Misdiagnosed stomach cancer

Kathleen Byrne, the 75-year-old mother of Irish health activist Janette Byrne, was given an incorrect diagnosis of stomach cancer, and told she would need her stomach removed (in a gastrectomy). When Mrs. Byrne's test results were sent to England for a further opinion, cancer was ruled out.

The Byrne family are now calling for a full investigation into the events at the Dublin hospital, but the hospital has said there will not be an inquiry.

The operation was scheduled for November 2006, but cancelled at the last moment. A number of biopsies were taken, the family said in a press release describing the events. Then, in March, the pathology results from an English laboratory showed that she did not have cancer.

Janette Byrne told irishhealth.com that her mother is now receiving medication for diverticulitis, and is feeling well.

Janette Byrne is the founder of the lobby group Patients Together. The group and its website campaign particularly for improvements in Accident & Emergency departments. She is also the author of If It Were Just Cancer, a book describing her own struggle with breast cancer.

To see a 2005 interview with Janette Byrne, visit...
http://www.irishhealth.com/video.html

Advice: Seek a truly independent second opinion when surgery is suggested.

Read another of our misdiagnosis stories, or read IrishHealth.com’s source story.