Surgeon tells inquiry of anguish at breast cancer patient's death after operation

Published on Tuesday 6 May 2008 10:25

THE surgeon who carried out a breast removal operation on a woman who died the next day has told a court that she was "tattooed" on his brain.

His patient, 49-year old Marlene Wightman from Dalkeith, died at the Western General Hospital in the early hours of March 23, 2006.

At a Fatal Accident Inquiry at Edinburgh Sheriff Court today, consultant surgeon, Michael Dixon, was asked if he could recall Mrs Wightman.

"Absolutely" he replied "she is tattooed on my brain". Mr Dixon, obviously distressed, said doctors were told never to get carried away, but Mrs Wightman was the only patient he had operated on who had died.

The 53-year-old was appointed to the breast cancer unit at the Western in 1990 and has carried out hundreds of operations successfully since then.

Giving evidence to the inquiry last week, Mrs Wightman's husband, Thomas; son, John; and daughter, Lisa; said that when they met Mr Dixon on the day of her death, he was clearly upset and had advised them to consult a lawyer.

The surgeon told the inquiry that pre-operation tests on Mrs Wightman had shown her to be "fit and well" apart from the cancer in her left breast.

He said he had discussed with her the various options following a mastectomy and they had agreed the best option was a "flap reconstruction".

This involves removing skin from another part of the patient's body, in Mrs Wightman's case from her back.

Asked by Fiscal Depute, Pauline Shade, if it was accepted there would be bleeding after the operation, Mr Dixon said: "Certainly, there is always bleeding during an operation and immediately after an operation".

He said Mrs Wightman was to be his first patient on the morning of March 22 and he had spent 15 to 20 minutes talking to her the night before.

Asked if she was anxious, the surgeon replied: "Yes, she was a little anxious. I think all patients are anxious before surgery. I don't think she was any more anxious. She was a young woman with breast cancer."

When the Fiscal asked him for more details of what information Mrs Wightman had received prior to the operation, Mr Dixon startled the inquiry when he told them that, because of the lapse of time since the event and the number of patients he had treated: "I had a look yesterday for the papers relating to Marlene, but I could not get them. I was told they had been removed".

Mr Dixon said there was "a clear protocol" in the unit that such material be kept, as it was "a valuable source of material". He added: "I was told Mrs Wightman's notes were not there. That they had been taken away for the inquiry".

The inquiry continues.