A mum battling cancer has told of her horror after wrongly being given the all-clear following a scanning blunder. Carla Bell, 48, was devastated when she was diagnosed with colon cancer. After surgery and months of chemotherapy she had a scan at Forth Valley Hospital , in Larbert , and was given “the news we had all been dreaming of” – she was free of the disease. “We celebrated that moment with everything we had, believing the worst was behind us,” said the mum of two, from Polmont , near Falkirk. But she has told the Daily Record how “much to the shock of the surgeons who treated me” she fell ill again. And while back on treatment, she discovered mistakes had been made with the prescribing of her chemotherapy and received an apology from hospital bosses. But worse was to come after mother-of-two Carla and her husband Graeme, 50, sought a second opinion from the private Cleveland Clinic . “Their review of the ‘all-clear’ scans revealed the cancer had still been there,” Carla said. “Because it went undetected for five critical months, the situation has got far more complex.” They complained to the health board and the Health Secretary Neil Gray about their treatment and were disgusted to receive “a generic letter suggesting we call Macmillan (cancer charity) for emotional support”. Carla said: “To be offered a phone number for a charity instead of a clinical solution—after the system’s own errors allowed my disease to progress— has been appalling. “We are still fighting for the government to take responsibility, but my health cannot wait for the wheels of bureaucracy to turn as they continue to kick the can down the street.” Carla was first diagnosed with colon cancer in February 2024. It was in December that same year that doctors wrongly gave her the all-clear – but she only discovered the blunder in April last year. Carla said: “We were told by the oncologist at Forth Valley on Friday the 13th of December that they had got the report back and I was all clear. Maybe the date should have given us pause for thought. “We were relieved but I had a gut feeling we hadn’t seen the last of this place. “I started to prepare for a return to work and to normal life but months later my stomach swelled up like I was having triplets. That was the red flag that the cancer was back. “At that point, we were told the cancer was incurable but I did some research and discovered the treatment I needed was available on the NHS at Basingstoke. However, we were told I was not eligible because they wanted to see how chemotherapy would work. “At this point, we sought a second opinion at the Cleveland Clinic and during a meeting with the consultant he mentioned that the scans in December showed the cancer was still there. “We were shocked and probably should have been angry but it was more a feeling of disappointment. We had put our faith in the NHS and we suddenly realised that someone’s error had put my life at risk.” Carla now faces up to 21 days of treatment at the Cleveland Clinic in London, which will see her undergo two operations at once, removing her gallbladder and part of her liver in the process. She will also undergo heated chemotherapy in order to blast any remaining cancer cells. She will then spend three days in intensive care following the operation. The treatment Carla now needs is not available on the NHS and the couple have been forced turn to the Cleveland Clinic, in London, which will cost £115,000. They have set up a GoFundMe in a bid to help raise the cash. Do help out go to www.gofundme.com/f/help-me-beat-cancer-diagnosis NHS Forth Valley and the Scottish Government were both contacted by the Daily Record over Carla’s case. Scotland’s NHS was hit by a scandal over scanner blunders in 2024. More than 1000 CT scans needed to be reviewed after concerns were raised about the work of one consultant radiologist. The medic was responsible for interpreting the detailed images of internal body parts and identifying health issues like cancer. The scans were carried out at hospitals around the country and assessed by one of a central pool of experts working for the Scottish National Radiology Reporting Service (SNRRS) between April 2022 and July 2024. It is understood that the review found that about 10 patients had potentially been affected. The consultant radiologist at the centre of the 2024 review no longer works for the SNRRS and there is no link to Carla’s case. The SNRRS employs 130 radiologists across the country who assess scans remotely. It is coordinated from the Golden Jubilee Hospital in Clydebank to provide faster diagnosis and access to treatment for patients. Get more Daily Record exclusives by signing up for free to Google’s preferred sources. Click HERE

Original source: gb