WAKING up in the recovery ward in a Birmingham hospital Debbie Douglas was gripped by a spasm of pain across her chest and stomach.
It was 2003 and Debbie, then 44, had undergone , reconstruction on her left breast and lymph node removal after being told by a consultant she had
But the truth was Debbie should never have had the surgery.
Shockingly, she actually only needed a lumpectomy – a small tumour removal – and had been falsely told by Patterson that she needed invasive .
Now, 22 years on, Debbie is still fighting to keep the man who butchered her behind bars.
“The pain I suffered in the recovery room is nothing compared to the agony that ‘evil consultant’ caused to me and hundreds of other patients who underwent unnecessary surgery,”; she says.
“The system must change now otherwise it will happen again. It is time to realise doctors are not Gods and patients have rights.”;
‘Easy victims'
In May 2017 breast surgeon after conducting unnecessary cancer operations on 10 patients across Britain.
Paterson, now 67, was convicted for operations on nine women and one man, but it is believed there are hundreds of other victims.
He was found guilty of 17 counts of wounding with intent and three of unlawful wounding in what is one of Britain’s most shocking medical scandals, highlighting severe failures in patient safety and medical oversight.
Concerns about Paterson were raised as early as the 1990s but ignored.
Whistleblower and patient complaints were swept under the carpet until 2011 when the General Medical Council or (GMC) finally suspended Paterson after an internal hospital inquiry discovered he’d been performing unauthorised procedures.
In 2012 a five-year police investigation began with hundreds of former patients coming forward.
The probe revealed the butcher surgeon had falsely told victims they were suffering cancer or exaggerated their risk, so they would go under his knife.
found that he had harmed hundreds ofpatients.
There are still more than 62 inquests the coroner has ordered into “unnatural deaths” of Paterson patients awaiting completion.
Retired supply chain engineer Debbie, 66, lives in Solihull, , with her husband Bob, 69, a retired manager.
In November 2003 the mum-of-three went to see Paterson at the Solihull Spires Parkway Hospital in Birmingham after discovering a lump in her left breast.
“My mum died of esophageal cancer aged 62 in 2001 and my dad passed away from aged 62 in 2002,”; Debbie says.
“I was terrified of and was an ‘easy victim’ for Paterson.”;
Debbie was convinced Paterson was “the best” and saw him at a private hospital.
“I was an engineer, and I tried to find research data on Paterson to compare his success rates, but this information was not available,”; she admits.
“Paterson was promoted in the area as ‘being the best’ so that was all I could go on.”;
According to Debbie, the twisted surgeon examined her lump and then did an aspiration – a procedure where a needle is guided into the lump to extract cells for examination.
“Paterson felt where the lump was and said this is really going to hurt,”; she remembers.
“He jabbed it a number of times with a needle, randomly guessing where the lump was and then without proper testing told me I had cancer.
“Hearing the word cancer after my parents had died in the previous two years was gut-wrenching and tumultuous.”;
Within three weeks Debbie underwent a so-called skin sparing mastectomy, which removes the breast tissue but keeps the skin covering it.
Fat is then transferred from the stomach area, as well as using part of the stomach muscleto rebuild the breast.
Paterson then said she needed half a year of chemotherapy.
“I then had months of chemotherapy, was constantly sick and lost all my hair all under the care of Paterson,”; Debbie says.
“I had huge lows of depression and vulnerability. I was haunted by my parents' death due to cancer and I found myself having to be practical and prepare for the worst.
“I found myself frustrated and lost in grief. The use of stomach muscle to rebuild the breast meant I had less movement and independence.
“It was life-altering.”;
‘Terrified to see him in street'
It wasn’t until a decade later in August 2013 that Debbie learned the truth.
She says: “I found out when I read a medical report by an independent specialist who confirmed I only needed a lumpectomy, no chemo, the lymphs should never have been removed, nor did I need a mastectomy and breast reconstruction.
“I cannot explain the horror I felt at what this so-called ‘expert' had done to me, my family and so many other people.”;
As a result, Debbie joined the cancer charity Breast Friends of Solihull and is now its chairperson.
She was asked to give evidence at Paterson’s trial, provided statements to police and is now dedicated to improving patient rights in Britain.
The convicted butcher surgeon was jailed for 20 years in 2017.
However, because of good behaviour he could walk free in just two years’ time in 2027, after serving just ten years.
“There is no way Ian Paterson should be allowed out of jail in 2027,”; Debbie says.
“So many patients say they're terrified of passing him in the street.
“We still have not had the results of all the inquests. Imagine if you were one of those people he performed unnecessary surgery on.
“Twenty years down the line some victims are still now only finding out for the first time they never had cancer in the first place.
“It is a travesty of justice to the thousands who suffered, he simply cannot walk free after just ten years behind bars.”;
“I was left with a scarred body and a constant reminder of what he did.
“No person having breast cancer treatment or check-ups should be subjected to that.
Debbie also says despite government promises, a centraliseddatabase allowing patients access to information about their doctor or surgeon so they can make ‘informed decisions’ about their treatment choices has not been created.
As a result of Paterson’s conviction, a Department of Health inquiry promised changes.
In December 2022, the Department for Health said it was making “good progress” on changes.
The inquiry, published in 2020, made 15 recommendations including a public register listing what types of operations a surgeon is allowed to perform, a cooling off period so patients could decide if the suggested surgery is right for them, improved communication with patients and faster response procedures to complaints.
“You’d assume these very basic recommendations would have been fast-tracked into use,”; says Debbie.
“But we are still waiting, it feels as though surgeons are still treated like gods.”;
Debbie is now urging health bosses to “get on” with improvements.
“It's shocking people like me were butchered unnecessarily, people told they wrongly had cancer and the simple ‘to-do list’ of recommendations has not been put into place,”; she says.
“What is wrong with health chiefs? Why are patients less important than doctors and surgeons?
“It is time for patients and everyone to say ‘enough'.
“It happened to me, and it could still happen to you.
“People research the car they want to buy or a holiday they want to take more than who they have surgery with.
“That’s because information is hidden. I say no more.
“It is why I continue to campaign ten years on, or else we risk being the victims of the next butcher surgeon or Dr Death.”;
