Patient with common throat infection was wrongly told she had cancer after voice recognition software used to type hospital letter misheard the medical term ‘candida’
- Nicola Denyer, 39, from Ramsgate, went to Margate hospital with a sore throat
- Ear Nose and Throat department computer confused ‘candida’ with ‘cancer’
- Candida is a common yeast infection easily treated with medication
A patient with a throat infection was told she had cancer by bungling hospital staff.
Nicola Denyer, 39, of Ramsgate, Kent, was referred to an ear, nose and throat specialist after complaining of pain for six weeks.
She went to her appointment at the Queen Elizabeth The Queen Mother Hospital in Margate and told she had nothing to worry about.
But just two days later she received a letter saying she had cancer.
The hospital computer had confused the word ‘candida’, which is a yeast infection easily treatable with medication, with ‘cancer’.
The letter, which was also sent to her GP surgery East Cliff Medical Practice, read: ‘Flexible nasal endoscopy confirms presence of cancer at the base of the tongue, which can certainly account for this lady’s symptoms.’
Nicola Denyer, 39, of Ramsgate, Kent, was referred to an Ear Nose and Throat specialist after complaining of pain for six weeks
The hospital trust was forced to write a letter of apology after their computer mistook the word candida for cancer
Mrs Denyer’s partner Paul Valentine, 64, who lost his wife to cancer eight years ago, says he suspected a mistake had been made as the rest of the letter suggested there were no serious issues.
But he struggled to get any response from the hospital despite leaving numerous messages.
He said: ‘All letters are checked by a clinician before they are posted and unfortunately in this case the error was missed’
Ms Denyer’s partner Paul Valentine, 64, (pictured with her) who lost his wife to cancer eight years ago, says he suspected a mistake had been made as the rest of the letter suggested there were no serious issues
‘In the end I finally made contact and was told this often happens.
‘To get a letter saying she had cancer, even though I thought it might be a mistake, was awful. I lost my wife to this dreadful illness.
‘My partner read the letter and said ‘oh my god’ but I told her not to panic, that it looked like an error.’
Mrs Denyer received another letter a week after the first, with the hospital apologising for the mistake and stressing that she does not have the disease.
It said: ‘We have newly installed a speech recognition software programme that has unfortunately mistaken the word candida for the word cancer.
The Queen Elizabeth The Queen Mother Hospital in Margate sent her a letter saying she had cancer when she only had a throat infection
The second letter to Mrs Denyer apologising for the mistake read: ‘Please let me reassure you that I saw no evidence of any cancer at all on endoscopy and I can only apologise for the error in your letter.’
Mr Valentine says while they were relieved at the confirmation, he admits it has been a traumatising experience.
He added: ‘It’s shockingly bad this was able to happen. I was sure it was a mistake, but the word had been used so you can’t help but worry.
‘I told them this is a word not to be played around with. If this had happened to someone else who didn’t realise it was a mistake, it could push them over the edge.’
A spokesman for East Kent Hospitals said: ‘We would like to offer our sincere apologies to Mrs Denyer for the distress and anxiety caused by this error.
‘All letters are checked by a clinician before they are posted and unfortunately in this case the error was missed.
‘We are reminding staff of the importance of thoroughly proof-reading all letters to prevent mistakes like this happening again.’