A mother in the UK died from stage IV cervical cancer after doctors mistakenly ruled that her abnormal Pap test and biopsy were clear.
Kelly Pugh, 48, died in June 2022 after being told that her test results came back normal despite bleeding.
“Words cannot describe the pain and exhaustion Kelly has been through,” her husband Stephen said. According to the BBC. “She was a beautiful, caring person and a wonderful mother. It was heartbreaking to watch her cancer take hold of her and her health deteriorate.”
According to the BBC, the mother-of-three underwent tests after she started experiencing bleeding after sex around 2017, but had a 10-year history of abnormal cells in her cervix.
In 2018 she had a routine Pap smear and was told it came back normal, but after her death in June 2022, an audit of her documents by the Royal Shrewsbury Hospital found that this was not the case. It turns out there wasn’t.
Doctors at the hospital were unable to find a clear cause for her bleeding the previous year, but she was noted to be at high risk of contracting HPV, subsequently underwent a biopsy, and experienced pain at the base of her spine. .
She was diagnosed with stage IV cancer, and an MRI scan revealed a large tumor the size of a tennis ball.
She underwent surgery and began radiation and chemotherapy, but succumbed to the disease in June 2022.
After her death, an audit found that her cervical cancer test results showed signs of severe cell changes.
Because of this, her husband decided to hire medical negligence attorney Irwin Mitchell to see if the hospital could have diagnosed her cancer sooner.
Stephen is considering taking legal action and is now urging women to be aware of the signs of cervical cancer, which is often diagnosed in its late stages.
He said that despite his wife’s illness, he always put his family first and that “she means absolutely everything to me and we all miss her every day.”
Pugh leaves behind three children, Morgan (24); Lily, 14 years old. and Freddie, 11 years old. According to The Sun.
The hospital and Telford Hospitals NHS Trust, which assisted in the audit, expressed their condolences to the family.
“We continue to support Mr. Pugh with any questions regarding his wife’s care,” medical director Dr. John Jones said in a statement.
