Man Who Had Testicle Removed Was Told 'Cancer' Was A Varicose Vein

As cancer treatments go, Kevin Ratcliffe underwent a comprehensive bout of therapy. He was diagnosed with testicular cancer in 2007 and subsequently had radiotherapy and had the inside of his left testicle removed.

After spending seven years under the shadow of cancer, he went back to hospital with a similar problem. However this time, he was informed that he had been misdiagnosed, and that the problem was not cancer but rather a problem with a varicose vein.

Now, Kevin Ratcliffe, 23, has spoken about how the hospital blunder at the Royal Shrewsbury Hospital has "ruined his life". Worse still, shortly after the the surgery, doctors were aware of the misdiagnosis, but he wasn't informed.

He has said that the cancer and treatment made him abandon his dream of joining the Army and playing rugby. He is now considering launching legal action against the Shrewsbury and Telford Hospital NHS Trust.

In 2010, 2,286 men in the UK were diagnosed with testicular cancer.
It is the most common cancer of men aged 15-49 in the UK.
The incidence of testicular cancer has more than doubled in Britain since the mid-1970s.
Testicular cancer incidence is rising, particularly in white men.

The Shropshire Star reported: “For seven years I thought I had cancer,” he said. “I played rugby for Market Drayton and was told I could maybe make it professionally but had to give that up when I fell ill and I also couldn’t join the Army because I was told I couldn’t do heavy lifting after the treatment.

“They realised it wasn’t cancer seven years ago as it’s on my records – but no-one ever bothered to tell me and all they could say was ‘sorry’ when they realised the mistake this week. But I don’t think that is good enough.

“I’m disgusted to be honest and how many other poor people have been told the same? It has ruined my life living with this for the past seven years and now my life has been turned upside down.”

“I had to go to the radiology ward at Shrewsbury for six months and have treatment which could have caused serious damage to me.”

A spokesman for the Shrewsbury and Telford Hospital NHS Trust said: "While we cannot comment specifically on this case, we can confirm we always strive for the highest possible levels of patient care and experience and have a robust process in place to investigate cases where anyone feels we have not met those standards."

Testicular cancer: how to spot the signs:

Symptoms Of Testicular Cancer

A lump in the testicle(01 of05)

The most common symptom of a testicular cancer is a lump or swelling in part of one testicle. It can be as small as a pea or it may be much larger.Remember that most testicular lumps are NOT cancer. At a testicular clinic at the Queen Elizabeth Hospital in Birmingham, only 76 cancers were found out of 2,000 men seen with a testicular lump. This means that fewer than 4 in every 100 testicular lumps (4%) are cancer (figures courtesy of Mr Mike Wallace, FRCS).

Lymph glands(02 of05)

Sometimes testicular cancer cells can spread into lymph glands at the back of the abdomen. This can cause backache, which is usually constant and you need to take painkillers. If testicular cancer has spread, there may be lumps in other parts of the body, such as around the collarbone, or in the neck. These lumps are lymph glands that contain cancer cells.

Hormones in the blood(03 of05)

Many testicular cancers make hormones that can be detected in blood tests. Doctors call these hormones markers. There is more about this in our section about diagnosing testicular cancer. Occasionally, men with testicular cancer have tender or swollen breasts because of these hormones.

A heavy scrotum(04 of05)

Your scrotum may feel heavy. Your GP may shine a strong light through your testicle. If you have a fluid filled cyst (called a hydrocoele) rather than a cancer, the light will show through. A cancer is a solid lump and the light can't pass through it. Your doctor may call this test transillumination.

Discomfort or pain(05 of05)

Testicular cancer is not usually painful, but about 1 in 5 men (20%) have a sharp pain in the scrotum as a first symptom. Some men may have a dull ache in- The affected testicle- Their lower abdomen

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