'Overweight' man had 55lb tumour

[emad]

London Evening Standard
14 March 2005

A man whose malignant tumour went unnoticed by doctors for nine years discovered it had grown to a weight of 55lb when an operation was finally carried out to remove it, it emerged today.

Trevor Smithson, 53, of Yateley, Hampshire, says he was told to lose weight by experts at the Royal Berkshire Hospital in Reading, who failed to notice the growth despite carrying out three operations on him.

When he was finally referred to the Royal Marsden Hospital in London, the surgeon there asked him: "So you've not been to see your doctor for years and years, have you?"
Mr Smithson has now registered a complaint with the Healthcare Commission, the independent healthcare inspection body, and says he intends to take legal action against the Royal Berkshire Hospital.

http://www.thisislondon.com/news/articles/17257602?source=PA

EDIT: Maybe he should have asked for faith healing on the NHS, as per yesterday's DU:
http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=102x1308341

[Heddi]

1. My mother was trying to loose weight

and couldn't get below a certain point. Being underinsured, she's not been in a position to have regular GYN checkups (or any checkups for that matter) in the time-frame that a woman her age should have them.

But in this instance, not being able to loose weight, she decided to see the Dr.

They found 20lbs of Ovarian Cysts residing inside of her. 8lbs on one ovary, 10lbs on another, plus X quarts of ascites (fluid that has leaked into the abdominal cavity).

She had to have a complete hysterectomy and they were able to drain one of the cysts and leave that ovary in place while removing the other one.

She was chastized long and hard by her surgeon of the importance of having yearly gyn checkups---she gently reminded him that had her employer provided decent medical coverage that didn't call for $75 copay to just SEE the doctor that she would have been in yearly, but as she not only had crappy insurance but a crappy hourly wage, it was kind of difficult to make those medical trips as necessary.

she now owes at least a thousand dollars to different dr's and hospitals for her medical bills and surgical bills.

[Vladimir]

9. Sick and wrong

societies that do not regard health care as a fundamental right don't deserve to be called civilized IMO. We are fighting our own fights here in Europe against the privtisation of health care all the time, but at least I don't have to think about money when I feel ill (yet!)...

[amazona]

11. wishing your mom the best of health soon

What an experience. Now I feel a bit silly for complaining about my golf-balled size fibroid. We're just doing the "watch and wait" thing since it isn't big or nuisance enough to remove at this stage. So far, so good, it has stayed the same and not grown any more over the last few years. My ob/gyn warned me that some grow into what he called "basketballs" and he wouldn't allow it to get to that size.

My mom just went ahead and had the hysterectomy, and she felt better than ever afterward, so I'm hoping the same will be true for your mom. We all make the best decision we can using the information and resources we have at the time, don't let your mom get on herself. A lot of women would put on 20 pounds and think nothing of it really. Ovarian cysts can burst, so it is well that she had them removed in time despite all the roadblocks.

The conservation movement is a breeding ground of communists
and other subversives. We intend to clean them out,
even if it means rounding up every birdwatcher in the country.
--John Mitchell, US Attorney General 1969-72

[Heddi]

12. She was really scared because

at her age, they were automatically deemed 'pre-cancerous', so when she had the surgery they had a gynecological oncologist right there in the OR to do staging and lymph-node removal if the pathologist deemed them to be cancerous.

It was scary, but she's doing alot better.

I asked her, upon finding out that she had 20 lbs of cysts, how she could have them and not feel any pain and she said she felt NOTHING. She had occasional bloating feelings and indigestion--which is understandable considering her bowel and intestines were being mushed around and displaced by the cysts. She said she felt a muscle-type cramp if she layed on her side, but nothing that you would think 20lbs of cysts would cause.

I worked in Seattle with Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center right before she had her surgery. They're currently doing a study on ovarian cancer--it's called "the silent killer' because it really has no symptoms that are unique. Many women report abdominal discomfort, cramps, bloating--but those are so vague and general that many women don't seek treatment for it, or when they do, they still get a normal pap-smear and don't realize they have cancer until it's spread throughout their abdomen and reproductive tract.

Scary!

Good luck with you and your fibroids!

[Mairead]

2. Bloody hell.

There are people who should be struck off for that.

But this is what came of Thatcher being in power.

[GiovanniC]

3. Caps on Medical Malpractice Suits Forthwith!

[UdoKier]

4. You're being sarcastic, right?

nt

[GiovanniC]

5. Big Yeah

[DS1]

6. Good thing he wasn't flying SouthWest

:shrug:

[tjwash]

7. Oh goody. Now the freepers can say "see, socialized medicine is bad"

[AntiCoup2K4]

8. Nine years with a 55 lb malignant tumor?

I'm surprised the man isn't dead already, or that cancer hadn't spread elsewhere.

Actually this isn't something I needed to read, since I'm trying to figure out an unexplained rapid weight gain issue myself at the moment. Now I'm a little paranoid :scared:

[amazona]

10. go and get checked out

Unexplained weight gain can have a number of causes, and many of these tumors are benign, especially in women, it is pretty common to have uterine growths called fibroids that are not cancer. THey don't need to be removed if they stay fairly small. My ob/gyn said that of all the fibroids he removed in 18 years, only 2 were malignant.

However, checking your profile and seeing you are male, I would consider being a little more pro-active about getting a quick check-up for the unexplained gain. Don't be paranoid, you're probably OK, just look into it.

The conservation movement is a breeding ground of communists
and other subversives. We intend to clean them out,
even if it means rounding up every birdwatcher in the country.
--John Mitchell, US Attorney General 1969-72