Woman who was mutilated by 'butcher surgeon' reveals how he convinced her to undergo unnecessary mastectomy
Ian Paterson was jailed in 2017 in the UK after he was convicted of wounding patients by giving them unnecessary or botched operations
A woman who was given unnecessary surgery by a 'butcher surgeon' has revealed how she was convinced to go ahead.
Ian Paterson was jailed in 2017 in the UK after he was convicted of wounding patients by giving them unnecessary or botched operations.
He received a 20-year prison sentence, but is set to be released next year on license.
Between the years of 1993 and 2011, Paterson treated thousands of woman both in the NHS and at private hospitals.
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During this time, the consultant carried out unapproved breast surgeries, with around 750 patients having received compensation for his crimes.
One woman who fell victim to Paterson was Deborah Douglas who visited him privately when she found a lump in her breast.
Speaking on UK daytime show, This Morning, Deborah explained how she came to meet Paterson and how he convinced her that surgery was the correct option.
She explained: "I met him because I'd found a lump in my breast and I saw my GP. I had healthcare cover with work.
"I saw Patterson in a private hospital. The first time I walked into that hospital, from the receptionist to the cleaner, everyone said, 'You're so lucky to have Ian Patterson. He's the best consultant in the country, he's one of the best breast surgeons, you've got the best team'.
"So I felt really confident when I walked in to see him."
Deborah had a less than 2cm lump, and explained that Paterson first took her into a separate room and 'jabbed' a needle into her breast, without guidance or anesthetic.
"He jabbed it into my breast," said Deborah.
"I could see the nurse looking perturbed... when you look back on all that, at the time I just thought he was doing his job."
Deborah returned a few days later to be told that while she was curable, she would need to have a mastectomy with reconstructive surgery.
"That entailed removing my left breast. He talked about this immediate reconstructive surgery and that meant they would take part of my stomach muscle, re-route it through my chest wall," said Deborah.
"He removed all of my lymph nodes. So I was cut from hip to hip. I had an elliptical scar around my breast, a long scar under my arm, left armpit, where he removed all my lymph nodes."
Years later, Deborah found that her surgery - as well as seven rounds of chemotherapy - were completely unnecessary.
In fact, all Deborah actually needed was a lumpectomy to remove the lump.
Deborah has released a book about her experience, The Cost of Trust, which is scheduled for release on February 12.
Lucy Devine