Two people with cancerous tumours were told they didn’t have cancer, a review into errors made by a senior St. Boniface Hospital pathologist has determined.
Diagnostic Services Manitoba released their final public update on the matter this afternoon, which revealed that the pathologist misdiagnosed two patients out of 822 cases that were reviewed.
The pathologist at the centre of the review will not face any further reviews or discipline since he has decided to retire.
While health officials still refuse to name the doctor, an investigation by the Free Press uncovered veteran pathologist Dr. Robert Stark was put on leave at the end of March after a colleague of his flagged his work to a superior.
In one instance, the review found a patient with colon cancer was told their tumour was benign when it was, in fact, cancerous.
Health officials said because this error occurred recently there was “no impact on the patient’s prognosis.”
Another patient who had part of their thyroid gland removed was told there was no presence of cancer. However, the pathology review determined it was cancer and the patient needs surgery.
Officials downplayed the significance of the serious error, noting that this type of cancer is very slow growing.
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