NHS trust apologises after man died when it failed to treat tumour
An NHS trust has apologised after a man died when it failed to treat his tumour.
Richard Harris, 71, died in July last year after errors by the Royal Sussex County Hospital 's neurosurgery department in Brighton, West Sussex.
University Hospitals Sussex NHS Foundation Trust (UHSussex), which runs the hospital, has admitted it failed to monitor or operate on a tumour in his nervous system despite doctors recommending this be done.
An internal review of Harris's care found doctors had not arranged a routine MRI scan after he received an urgent referral in 2017.
It was not until two years later, in 2019, that he had the scan after he contacted the neurology department himself.
Harris was then diagnosed with a benign schwannoma tumour and recommended for twice-yearly monitoring and surgical intervention, The Guardian reported.
But the surgery was not arranged and follow-up scans were postponed and cancelled.
In 2024, Harris, a former massage therapist, was referred to the neurosurgery department again after experiencing acute pain.
The review found there were further delays until his tumour was assessed as cancerous and inoperable.
He was released to hospice care and died a few weeks later.
'Possible corporate manslaughter'
Harris's family has been told his death was being investigated as possible corporate manslaughter along with 90 other deaths at the hospital's general surgery and neurosurgery departments, the newspaper reported.
Sussex Police has launched Operation Bramber to investigate allegations of medical negligence in those departments between 2015 and 2020.
The trust apologised to Harris before he died for its failure to arrange the follow-up scans in 2019.
'They seem to be expert at fobbing people off,' said his sister, Jane. 'The way they have treated us mirrors how Richard was treated. We are just so horrified by how Richard's life was cut short.'
She added: 'Richard slipped through the net time and time again. It is the whole system there that is the problem. The more you read about his case, the more delays you see.'
Katie Urch, the chief medical officer for UHSussex, said: 'Our heartfelt sympathies and apologies go to Richard Harris's family. We have conveyed this to them previously but hope to do so in person in the coming weeks.
'We know that they understandably still have many questions about Mr Harris's care.
'Regrettably, we cannot publicly discuss any of the details of this case at this time, but we will sincerely attempt to address any issues the family raise with us.'
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