A north-east cancer patient has blasted health bosses after waiting almost two years for treatment and claimed the delay had led to fears the disease has spread.
Bob Watson, 73, said he was “extremely worried” about NHS Grampian’s lack of treatment, adding he was concerned his condition had deteriorated to “something that might just lead to my demise”.
The case of Mr Watson, a former SNP councillor from New Aberdour, was described as “scandalous” by Tory MSP Peter Chapman when he raised it with Nicola Sturgeon yesterday.
Ms Sturgeon pledged to look into the case and agreed the wait was unacceptable when challenged at First Minister’s Questions at Holyrood.
Mr Watson first went to the doctor at the start of 2018 because he was concerned about a growth under his left eye.
He had a biopsy in early February which confirmed that he had a basal cell carcinoma. However, he then had to wait around a year to see a specialist at Aberdeen Royal Infirmary’s dermatology department.
The specialist then told him that he would need surgery to remove an area of skin of about one centimetre around the affected area.
Almost 10 months later, Mr Watson had not been notified of when he would be treated when he went to his GP and asked for a second lesion on his left ear to be examined.
According to Mr Watson, his doctor got in touch with the ARI and expressed concern that the growth by the ear might be similar to the one on his eye.
After asking when the second growth would be seen at the ARI, his GP told him that it would be removed when he was finally treated for the original one.
“It just seemed slack,” Mr Watson said. “Apparently, the cancer I have is not overly aggressive, but if it is not treated it can turn into aggressive types of cancer.
“It has played on my mind in case it is something that is far worse and might just lead to my demise.”
Mr Watson said: “You can’t point the finger at the medical staff, but I suppose you have to point the finger at the administration of the hospital. It is poor, it is bad management of the facility.”
At Holyrood, Ms Sturgeon said Health Secretary Jeane Freeman would look into the case, adding that the Scottish Government’s £850million waiting times improvement programme was underway.
A NHS Grampian spokesman said the board couldn’t comment on individual patients but would “strongly encourage” Mr Watson to get in touch to discuss his case.
He said: “Speaking generally about basal cell carcinoma, there are a number of possible treatment paths from simply monitoring through to surgical removal. In each case, specialists will decide the best course of action.”
