Woman Misdiagnosed With Brain Cancer for 11 Years

Becky Jones, a British mother of two, says she was diagnosed with terminal grade 4 glioblastoma in 2012 and underwent 11 years of temozolomide chemotherapy and radiotherapy after being told she would die without treatment. Independent experts later concluded that she had tumefactive demyelination, a form of brain inflammation potentially treatable with steroids. Her case is among more than 40 involving patients and families pursuing legal action against University Hospitals Coventry and Warwickshire NHS Trust and retired consultant neuro-oncologist Professor Ian Brown. A Royal College of Physicians review of 20 cases found no examples of good practice, rated 15 cases unsatisfactory and raised concerns about prolonged chemotherapy, inadequate records and consent, and failures in NHS oversight; some patients reportedly received more than 100 treatment cycles. The trust said it could not comment on individual cases but that patients were reviewed by senior clinicians after the responsible consultant retired.