Beverley woman's 'complete shock' at skin cancer misdiagnosis - BBC.com

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By PA Media

BBC News

A woman has spoken of her "complete shock" at being misdiagnosed with cancer and undergoing surgery when she never had the condition at all.

Megan Royle, 33, from East Yorkshire, was diagnosed with skin cancer in 2019.

As part of her treatment, she underwent immunotherapy and her eggs were frozen due to the risk to her fertility.

But after she was given the all-clear in 2021, a review showed she never had cancer and she has now won compensation from the two NHS trusts involved.

Ms Royle, from Beverley, said: "You just can't really believe something like this can happen, and still to this day I've not had an explanation as to how and why it happened.

"I spent two years believing I had cancer, went through all the treatment, and then was told there had been no cancer at all."

Ms Royle, a theatrical make-up artist living in London, was referred by her GP for a dermatology review at Chelsea and Westminster Hospital in 2019.

She had reported concerns about a mole on her upper arm which had grown, becoming itchy and scabbed.

A biopsy was carried out and Ms Royle, then aged 29, was told melanoma - a type of skin cancer - had been identified.

She was then referred to the specialist cancer unit at The Royal Marsden Hospital in London.

The diagnosis was confirmed and she subsequently had the "cancer" and surrounding tissue surgically removed.

Ms Royle also underwent a total of nine cycles of immunotherapy treatment and her eggs were frozen.

During the Covid lockdown, she returned from London to East Yorkshire and, when another hospital trust reviewed her file and scans, the misdiagnosis was discovered.

The news "took a while to sink in", she said.

"You'd think the immediate emotion would be relief and, in some sense, it was - but I'd say the greater emotions were frustration and anger."

She added: "I wasn't in a good place for quite some time, to be honest, strange as that may seem."

With Hull-based Hudgell Solicitors, Ms Royle has won an out-of-court settlement from the two London NHS trusts involved.

A spokesperson from The Royal Marsden NHS Foundation Trust said: "We wish to offer our sincere apologies to Megan Royle for the distress caused by her experience at our trust.

"We are pleased a settlement has been agreed."

The Imperial College Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust has also been approached by the Press Association for comment.