A RETIRED nurse who paid £3,000 for cancer tests to confirm she had a large tumour has received a diagnostic NHS 'kit' in the post - six months after she was first 'red flagged' by her her GP.
Cassie McNeill (77) from Cushendun in Co Antrim said she received a letter yesterday from the Northern health trust asking her to provide a 'speciman' sample, which would then be investigated.
The former Glens midwife and nurse, who worked in the health service for almost 50 years, last night described the development as "another form of inefficiency" that had made her "very cross and upset", having just completed five days of radiotherapy treatment.
"If I had waited to hear from the health service, that would be me just getting that test done now. That would be the start of my treatment as compared to me having all my tests done, having my radiotherapy done and on the list to have my operation. It's ridiculous," she said.
In last week's Irish News, Ms McNeill revealed her anxiety about being placed on a waiting list back in January for an urgent hospital assessment as her symptoms, which included rectal bleeding, grew worse.
Due to the pandemic, some cancer screening and procedures were postponed in both the NHS and the private sector as part of 'surge' planning.
The grandmother was due to see a consultant on March 16 but the appointment was cancelled that morning as a result of coronavirus. She located a private surgeon in April who diagnosed her with colorectal cancer, which can progress quickly if left untreated.
Last week, she received treatment at Belfast's main cancer centre to shrink the tumour - she is back on the NHS - and must undergo a scan next month.
Ms McNeill returned home to Cushendun yesterday to discover the health trust correspondence and accompanying testing kit requesting she provide a sample.
"I got a letter asking me to send off a specimen, which is totally crazy. From my GP referral letter back in January, it was sticking out a mile that I was passing blood. So this new test they've sent out is another sign of their inefficiency as far as I’m concerned," she said.
"I can understand how they have to send these letters out to everyone but it just shows that no-one is even mildly treated as an individual. My referral letter was screaming cancer ever though I tried to tell myself that it wasn’t. I had rectal bleeding in January - why do they want to do a test now to see if I have blood. It has made me very cross."
The nurse, who was a ward sister in the former Cushendun hospital and practice nurse in a GP surgery, contacted the trust and "made it very clear" she wouldn't be returning the test.
The Northern health trust said it "deeply regrets" the postponement of all outpatient hospital appointments due to Covid-19.
A spokeswoman confirmed an "approved testing procedure" for patients suffering colorectal symptoms had been made available and "is being used to priortise the waiting list".
"The trust fully understands the distress and anxiety caused by this delay and is making every effort to ensure patients are seen as quickly as possible," she added.
