“We apologize to the women affected.” The Swedish University Hospital in Uppsala announced this Tuesday, October 2, that it had carried out 33 surgical removals of the uterus, between 2023 and 2024, after an “error” in the diagnosis related to a preliminary stage of cancer.
“We deeply regret what happened. The elimination of theuterus “It is an important operation, with important and irreversible consequences,” said Johan Lugnegård, chief physician at the hospital, quoted in a press release.
A story of “overdiagnosis”
After the examination, the women in question, aged between 38 and 85, were informed that they had cellular changes that were precursors to uterine cancer. Therefore, surgical intervention was recommended and performed, the hospital says. However, it turned out that the diagnosis was incorrect and no surgery was necessary.
The hospital, on its own initiative, launched an investigation after observing an unexplained increase in the number of diagnoses of this type.
“We were too strict in our evaluations (…) which led to systematic overdiagnosis,” admitted Tommie Olofsson, head of the center’s university laboratory.
The hospital promised to review the history of similar cases and paved the way for financial compensation for the women involved.
Source: BFM TV
