Twenty women had breasts removed unnecessarily during cancer treatment, NHS trust admits

Twenty women had breasts removed unnecessarily during cancer treatment, NHS trust admits. Figure caption, Watch: Denise (pictured), Pam and other women describe how they were failedBySharon Barbour, North East & Cumbria health correspondent, Victoria Archer, BBC Local Investigations and Ben MilnePublished18 September 2026, 00:36 BSTUpdated 1 hour agoTwenty women underwent mastectomies unnecessarily while being treated for breast cancer, an NHS trust in north-east England has told the BBC.

What happened

Woman tells BBC of trauma after unnecessary breast cancer surgeryWoman tells BBC of trauma after unnecessary breast cancer surgeryCloseTwenty women underwent mastectomies unnecessarily while being treated for breast cancer, an NHS trust in north-east England has told the BBC. The women were among hundreds who were harmed by their treatment at County Durham health trust. "Figure caption, Watch: Steve Russell offers an apology to women affected by CDDFT failuresDozens of affected women and their families contacted us after we reported concerns about serious failings at the trust's breast cancer unit.

These included:A high number of mastectomies compared with other NHS trustsOperations that were carried out "too quickly"Outsourcing of some treatment to private clinics run by the trust's breast cancer clinical lead – an arrangement that one independent expert said created "a clear conflict of interestPatients described the shock they had felt on being told a mastectomy (the removal of all or part of a breast) could have been avoided, as well as the psychological and physical pain that many still live with.

Denise Howarth is one of several women who have now been told by the NHS that their breast was removed unnecessarily. But for the women whose breasts have been wrongly removed, it is too late. They were among hundreds of patients who came to harm during treatment at the breast unit of the County Durham and Darlington Foundation Trust (CDDFT).

The wider picture

Breast Cancer Scandal: Exposing The HarmBBC health correspondent Sharon Barbour investigates a deepening breast cancer scandal in County Durham and hears from women whose mastectomies were unnecessary. Last year, we reported that nearly £6m had been paid by the trust over six years to breast cancer diagnostic clinics and surgery companies run privately by Bhatti. Payment per service is not uncommon in healthcare, Russell argues, although he tells us the trust has now ended this arrangement for breast cancer services.

These meetings are designed to ensure treatment plans are reviewed and challenged by surgeons, radiologists, pathologists and cancer specialists – before major decisions, such as mastectomies, are made. " Breast cancer surgery, she says, "has some of the tightest guidelines and protocols, and you should have the same treatment wherever you are, private or public, in any part of the UK. "Image caption, Women and their families are now calling for a public inquiryAt Beamish Football Centre in the town of Stanley, a support group is meeting where women and their loved ones can share their experience of poor treatment by CDDFT's breast care unit.

Some of the women tell us they have had formal apologies from the trust, but all say that, more than anything, they want answers as to who was responsible for the failures in their care. Steve Russell, who has recently taken over as CDDFT's chief executive, says he apologises "unreservedly" for the harm the trust caused.

What has been reported

CDDFT is now carrying out an internal review of breast cancer cases between January 2023 and February 2025, alongside the cases of 640 former patients who contacted a dedicated helpline. Of 514 cases reviewed by the trust so far, 315 patients have been found to have suffered harm, including 77 who were significantly harmed. It says that cases have also been identified where cancer diagnoses were missed or delayed. Some of these patients subsequently saw their cancer spread. Russell has told BBC's Today programme that the trust will meet in the coming week to decide whether to extend the scope of the review, and look at up to 10,000 cases dating back as far as 2015.

He says the trust has been taking advice from patients' groups, clinical experts and legal representatives, and it will have to take "a really balanced view". Denise had been diagnosed with grade 1 (slow growing) cancer in 2023 after discovering a lump in her breast. Jo (not her real name) contacted the trust's helpline about a mastectomy she had undergone in 2021.

What happens next

Watch on BBC iPlayer now or on BBC NE & Cumbria at 19:30 on Friday 18 OctoberWatch on iPlayerJo says she had trusted the people she considered colleagues to do the best for her. "She now says she feels "mutilated" by what happened to her, and feels the mistakes made by the trust were "absolutely unforgivable". He has now been suspended from carrying out clinical practice but is still employed by the trust on full pay. Concern about this arrangement was raised in a 2025 review into the running of the trust, external, carried out by governance specialist Mary Aubrey,She said outsourcing patient appointments had created financial incentives which were potentially "a risk to clinical standards".

Bhatti was the consultant overseeing the care of all three women. We have shown photographs of Pam's scarring to Liz O'Riordan, a former breast cancer surgeon. "Concerns were also raised last year in a report by the Royal College of Surgeons (RCS) that breast cancer cases had not been discussed properly in multi-disciplinary team meetings (MDTs).

The report has been compiled by The Daily Waves using information reported across bbc.co.uk. Details are presented according to the information available at the time of publication and may change as authorities, organisers or other relevant parties provide updates.