Mum of girl treated by suspended surgeon 'angry and betrayed'
Cambridge University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust say the care of almost 800 patients who underwent surgery will be reviewed
The mother of an eight-year-old girl who was treated by a children's surgeon who has since been suspended says her daughter spent months in "almost constant pain" and she feels "angry and betrayed".
Cambridge University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust (CUH) said the care of almost 800 patients who underwent surgery during the orthopaedic surgeon's employment there will be reviewed by a panel of expert clinicians.
It came after an initial review identified that outcomes of treatment provided to nine children were "below the standard we would expect".
The parents of one of these nine children, speaking anonymously, said their daughter was born with hip dysplasia - where the ball and socket joint do not form properly.
They said that following surgery she has been left with arthritis, unable to walk without crutches, and will need a hip replacement in the future.
They said that they found out about the surgeon's suspension after watching news reports on the TV, with the trust apologising for this "unfortunate oversight".
"Since her first operation at four months old, she has spent her entire life in and out of hospital," the girl's mother said, in a statement released through lawyers.
"She has had 20 surgical procedures, each requiring general anaesthetic, and 17 of them by this same surgeon.
"She has spent months in casts as well as being in almost constant pain.
"It's hard enough to watch your child suffer, but we just thought they were the cards she'd been dealt."
She continued: "At first I blamed myself, I thought as her mum I should have known.
"I just feel so angry and betrayed by the people we put our trust in and I don't know how we're even going to begin to explain it to her.
"She just wants to be a normal little girl."
Her parents say a CT scan taken after her first surgery when she was four months old - a closed hip reduction - showed a still dislocated hip but was not acted on.
Her mother said it was "heartbreaking when you think of all the things she's already missed out on and may never do", adding: "It's her dream to be a cheerleader but I haven't the heart to tell her it may never happen."
Solicitor Jodi Newton, of Osbornes Law which is acting for the family, said the case "raises serious questions about safeguarding and scrutiny at one of the country's leading hospitals".
A CUH spokesperson said: "We apologise to the family that they were not contacted prior to our public statement on February 14.
"This was an unfortunate oversight and we have taken steps to strengthen our processes.
"We reiterate to all the patients and families affected by this that we are deeply sorry.
"We will do everything we can to support them, while investigations continue."
The trust has also commissioned an investigation into what was known and when, as it emerged that concerns had been raised as early as 2015.
It said the orthopaedic surgeon, who specialises in treating children, is co-operating with the trust and it is not naming the surgeon for legal reasons.
CUH announced last month it would be carrying out a retrospective external review into the practice of the surgeon who has been suspended.
The trust said the probe was ordered in October after concerns were raised by staff, and it received the conclusion of the initial external review in January.