Peterborough fork-lift truck driver suing hospital for £500,000 after claiming there were delays in diagnosing brain tumour

Jacob Costello, (24), of Big Green, Peterborough, claims there were delays in diagnosing that he was suffering from a brain tumour and treating him for it.

In a writ issued at the court in London and just made publicly available he says that as a result of what happened his right arm is now effectively useless, his mobility is affected by problems with his right leg, and he has headaches and a squint.

Without the alleged delay in diagnosis and treatment, he would have been able to go back to fork-lift truck driving, or a similar job, according to the writ. But it says that he will now need care and assistance, occupational therapy, accommodation, and mobility aids.

North West Anglia NHS Foundation Trust, which runs Peterborough City Hospital has admitted liability in failing to diagnose that he was suffering from a brain tumour when he underwent a CT scan on November 23 2017.

However, the two sides are unable to agree how much compensation Mr Costello, of 12 Big Green, Peterborough, should receive, and now a High Court judge will have to decide.

Mr Costello’s GP referred him to hospital with a history of worsening misalignment between his eyes, as well as headaches and right sided pain, and he was referred for a CT scan to exclude problems with his brain the writ says.

It claims that the radiological report of the scan failed to identify the clear evidence of a brain tumour, and he was told the results were normal.

As a result of this he is said to have been dealt with on a non-urgent basis, and was not seen again until July 30 2018 by an ophthalmologist who asked for an MRI scan to rule out a particular condition.

A report of this scan recorded a tumour as big as a golf ball which had grown in size since the previous scan, and although a red alert was put on this report he was not reviewed for another month, the writ claims. After a biopsy, he was treated with radiotherapy.

But the writ says that his neurological symptoms were relatively minor in February 2018 and his chances of neurological decline far less. He would also have been able to go back to work as a fork-lift truck driver, though he would have had eye symptoms and a squint, he says.

The Peterborough Telegraph contacted North West Anglia NHS Foundation Trust, and a spokesman declined to comment but is understood some elements may be disputed.