Woman finds out she never had cancer after two years of gruelling treatment

A woman had the 'shock' of her life after finding out she never had cancer after two years of gruelling treatment.

Theatrical make-up artist Megan Royle, 33, lived with a cancer diagnosis for two whole years and even went as far as to get her eggs frozen after having immunotherapy which can impact fertility.

Megan underwent nine cycles of treatment after she was told she had skin cancer and endured surgery which subsequently affected her fertility - only to discover it was all for nothing.

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The whole ordeal started when Megan was referred for a dermatology review at Chelsea & Westminster Hospital by her GP in 2019 after reporting that a mole on her upper arm had increased in size and become itchy and scabbed.

A biopsy was consequently carried out and Megan, who was 29 at the time, was told melanoma – a type of skin cancer – had been identified.

She was then referred to the specialist cancer unit at The Royal Marsden Hospital where her biopsy was reviewed and, again, she was told that this confirmed a melanoma.

Megan ended up having a 2cm wide excision of tissue to remove the 'cancer'.

When a new hospital trust reviewed her file and scans, the error with her diagnosis was finally discovered.

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Megan, who hails from Beverley, East Yorkshire, recalled: "You’d think the immediate emotion would be relief, and in some sense it was, but I’d say the greater emotions were frustration and anger.

"To be told two years later, having undergone the treatment and lived with the worry, I found being told I’d never had cancer at all hard."

She took her case to medical negligence specialists Hudgell Solicitors who won an out of court settlement with the two trusts.

Associate Solicitor Matthew Gascoyne said: "This was obviously a quite unusual case in that Megan was mistakenly diagnosed with skin cancer, something which obviously had a significant psychological impact upon her given her young age.

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"This was exacerbated by her needing surgery, and being advised that the only treatment she could have may impact upon her fertility.

"She suffered from sickness throughout her treatment, so it was a difficult time for her."

The solicitor added: "Finally, the psychological impact was worsened by being given the news that she’d not had cancer at all.

"All of this was entirely avoidable."

Megan received compensation from the Royal Marsden NHS Foundation Trust, and Imperial College Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust which hosts a joint pathology service used by Chelsea & Westminster Hospital, as both misinterpreted her results which lead to the misdiagnosis back in 2019.

A spokesperson from The Royal Marsden NHS Foundation Trust said: "We wish to offer our sincere apologies to Megan Royle for the distress caused by her experience at our trust and we are pleased that a settlement has been agreed."

A spokesperson for North West London Pathology, a joint partnership hosted by Imperial College NHS Trust, said: "We are deeply sorry for the distress caused to Ms Royle and apologise unreservedly for the error made.

"While no settlement will make up for the impact this has had, we are pleased an agreement has been reached."

If you’ve been affected by any of these issues and want to speak to someone in confidence, contact Macmillan’s Cancer Support Line on 0808 808 00 00, 8am–8pm seven days a week