£85,000 settlement obtained for woman following negligent breast surgery

Julie Crossley, a medical negligence specialist at Ashtons Legal, has obtained a settlement of £85,000 for Ms N after she underwent negligent breast surgery.

Ms N had a mastectomy following a diagnosis of breast cancer and opted for an immediate reconstruction. She was not informed of all the potential risks this surgery carried for her as a result of her medical history.

Many years prior, Ms N had undergone a breast reduction, meaning that she was at heightened risk of wound breakdown or skin necrosis should she subsequently undergo breast reconstruction. She was not aware of this and was not offered a choice of alternative procedures.

Following the surgery, Ms N developed an extensive area of skin necrosis, bruising and would breakdown. As a result of this she had to undergo further avoidable procedures and ended up taking early retirement due to a loss of confidence.

Julie comments: “This was a completely avoidable turn of events, the surgeon should have considered Ms N’s previous surgery and obtained proper consent from her. Failure to do so led to a catalogue of unsuccessful procedures. It was only when she changed surgeons several years later that she received an acceptable medical outcome.”