- The successful claims have been made in the past two years, figures show
- In many cases, the testicle could have been saved if man treated earlier
- But some men had a healthy testicle removed due to a medical error
- Once the diseased one had also been removed, they were left with nothing
- £815,000 was paid out to 38 men in compensation after such errors
- Men who lose both testicles are likely to suffer from erection problems and will not be able to father children naturally
By
Anna Hodgekiss
10:17 EST, 20 February 2014
|
12:41 EST, 20 February 2014
Almost 40 men have won compensation claims against the NHS in the last two years after botched medical care meant doctors needlessly removed one of their testicles.
In the majority of cases, surgeons had to remove a testicle that could have been saved if a man had been diagnosed earlier.
But in a handful of horrifying cases, doctors have removed the wrong testicle in a surgical blunder and then have to operate again to remove the other one when the mistake is discovered – leaving the man with no testicles.
In some extreme cases, doctors have removed the wrong testicle and then had to operate again to remove the correct one – leaving the man with no testicles (file picture)
The NHS typically pays out around £20,000 when it admits it is at fault for leaving men as monorchid – the medical term for having just one testicle.
But payments for removing a man’s only healthy testicle in a surgical mix-up can be around £70,000 as the individual gets compensation for being left infertile.
Often the compensation figure includes a sum to pay for cosmetic surgery to provide the men with a false testicle.
Figures from the National Health Service Litigation Authority (NHSLA) show that in the last two years 38 successful cases have been brought by men who claimed they were victims of botched surgery on their testicles.
In total £815,000 was paid out by the NHSLA in those cases, meaning the average payout has been around £21,000.
Last year a 48-year-old company director, who didn’t want to be named, revealed he was bringing legal action against Salisbury District Hospital after he had a healthy testicle removed by mistake.
THE DEVASTATING MEDICAL BLUNDERS THAT COST MEN A TESTICLE
Medical negligence lawyers have revealed detail of some of the claims. These include:
*
Mr E was sent home by a hospital doctor with antibiotics after saying
his right testicle felt hard. When he later went back it was found he
had been suffering from testicular torsion, his testicle was now
gangrenous and had to be removed. Compensation: £24,000.
*
Mr A went to hospital after suffering pain in his lower abdomen while
playing football. But medics didn’t check out his tackle and he was sent
home with painkillers. Testicular torsion was diagnosed by his GP two
days later and he had to have it removed. Compensation: £15,000.
*
Mr S was driving home when his left testicle swelled to “an enormous
proportion†and the pain was described as “excruciatingâ€.
He
was taken in to AE but a string of delays meant that by the time
he was seen privately by a consultant urologist, it was too late to save
his testicle. Compensation £13,000 including £2,500 for a prosthetic testis.
Mr J was diagnosed with testicular cancer and was due to have his right testicle removed.
However,
the surgeon mistaken removed the left one. The medical team had to
later break the bad news to the patient, who then had to go under the
knife again to remove the cancerous one. Compensation: £70,000.
He had gone into theatre expecting a
cancerous testicle would be removed, but 40 minutes after the operation a
doctor realised the blunder.
The healthy testicle was then frozen, while a plastic surgeon was rushed to the scene and tried to undo the damage.
He said: ‘It seems I can no longer father children. I have gone through incredible stress and strain.’
The
most common reason for payouts is when medics misdiagnose testicular
torsion where the tubes inside the body get twisted cutting off the
blood supply.
New figures show that in the last two years, 38 successful cases have been brought by men who had botched surgery on their testicles
The condition has to be diagnosed quickly as the testicle can be dead within a few hours.
Other
claims result from the consequences of hernia operations where the
blood supply to the testicle is accidentally cut off in the surgery.
Joyce
Robins, Co-Director of Patient Concern, said: ‘It is beyond belief that
medics could be so careless. No monetary amount could compensate for a
life wrecked because a man can no longer father children.
‘We
would like to think that surgeons who make this such a crass error were
barred from performing similar operations in the future – but we
realise that is a vain hope.’
WHAT ARE THE MEDICAL IMPLICATIONS OF LOSING A TESTICLE?
Rob Cornes, a male cancer nurse at the cancer charity Orchid, told MailOnline:
Around 90% of the male sex hormone testosterone, is produced by the testicles.
Testosterone is the hormone responsible for secondary male characteristics such as muscle, bone growth, hair pattern, deep voice and a general feeling of well-being in men.
It is also responsible for sperm growth. Having one testicle removed should not affect the overall testosterone levels, sex drive or ability to have an erection or fertility.
Providing that the remaining testicle is healthy, it should do the job of both. Â
If it is performed for testicular cancer and subsequent chemotherapy is needed, men will be advised to bank sperm as chemotherapy may cause temporary infertility.
Removal of both testicles will severely impact the level of testosterone produced and will
Men who lose both testicles are likely to have erection problems due to the reduced levels of testosterone. They will also be unable to father a child naturally.
When testosterone levels are minimal men will often experience a loss of libido, well-being and may experience lethargy, low mood and depression, weight gain and sometimes breast swelling.
In this situation testosterone replacement therapy will be needed. This can be administered in the form of injections, gels or patches but may take some weeks for levels to normaliseâ€.
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Hollingbourne Kent,
moments ago
Could make a clean breast of things :))
Hollingbourne Kent,
moments ago
It’s quite a balls up then;)
darren,
Londonderry NI,
moments ago
A few comedians commenting here. Would there be as many jokes about breast cancer I wonder?
Bradshaw101,
Winchester, United Kingdom,
30 minutes ago
and the chances of having biological children are stripped away just like that… I know it’s human nature to make mystakes but SURELY when dealing with something as important as the reproductive organs, there would be a fool-proof policy to ensure mistakes like this don’t happen.. poor blokes
Andy M,
Middlesbrough, United Kingdom,
42 minutes ago
NHS have really dropped one this time.
Gino X,
London, United Kingdom,
47 minutes ago
good, because he dont have to break it for nobody
Gino X,
London, United Kingdom,
47 minutes ago
thats what i call men with no balls
jj,
Preston, United Kingdom,
48 minutes ago
The medical profession are very free with prescribing pain killers. Pain killers won’t cure any problem. They do what it says on the bottle. They kill the pain. How does that cure the patient?
If there is something wrong with you, you might just get worse and worse until eventually someone might take an interest and diagnose the problem.
The_Mutts_Nuts,
Got-Chopped-Off, United Kingdom,
50 minutes ago
Surprise us, how many are MP’s? If the figures printed are to be believed, there should be a recount in parliament and among the judiciary.
Jaz Jack. vote ukip!!!!!,
London,
54 minutes ago
Should have been 200k minimum!!!
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