£10,000 for surgical error concerning biopsy taken from wrong site

Mrs T became aware of a small lump on the underside of her tongue and, following consulting with her GP, she was referred to her local NHS Hospital for further review. Mrs T was ultimately listed for a small surgical procedure to have the lesion removed and tested.

Following the procedure, Mrs T realised the lump was still present and, instead, the surgeon had removed a small piece of normal, healthy tissue. Mrs T was extremely upset by this, not least because it meant she had undergone an unnecessary surgical procedure and now had to undergo a further procedure to actually remove the lump.

There was scar tissue at the site of the initial surgery, which causes Mrs T to experience discomfort and tightness when moving her tongue. Mrs T instructed Aston Knight Solicitors to represent her in a claim against the relevant NHS Trust, and we immediately began the process of investigating what had gone wrong.

We instructed a renowned expert in Oral & Maxillofacial Surgery, who prepared reports addressing the key issues of breach of duty, causation, condition and prognosis. The expert concluded that Mrs T had suffered avoidable injury as a result of the surgical error, and that her ongoing symptoms would likely be permanent.

Following disclosure of the expert opinion, we were able to negotiate a settlement in the sum of £10,000; a figure which Mrs T was really pleased with.