A mother-of-two has been through a rollercoaster of emotions after doctors wrongly diagnosed her with cancer.
Christchurch woman. Toni Shields received the terrible diagnosis on May 22 after going to the doctor to investigate a problem with her spleen.
The mother immediately thought of her two children and began preparing for end-of-life care and even began arranging their funeral.
However, just a week later, Ms Shields’ plans came to a sudden halt after her doctor revealed that a mix-up had caused another patient’s records to be sent to her.
Ms Shields initially discovered the heartbreaking news through her Patient Portal, Australia’s equivalent of My Health Record, and was told to visit the doctor immediately.
Christchurch mother-of-two Tony Shields (pictured) has been given a new lease of life after she was told a cancer diagnosis was the result of a records mix-up between her and another patient.
The record showed that the mother had several lumps on her liver that were likely cancerous.
“I went to the doctor and she sat me down and said, ‘Unfortunately, you more than likely have cancer.’ It was a hard pill to swallow,” he told New Zealand Herald.
Breaking the news to his two children proved even more difficult, with his “devastated” eldest son “stuck to the spot and just withering away.”
The distraught mother began looking for ways to help her transition to an early death and threw away her old belongings because she “wouldn’t need them.”
“I wanted to get some kind of age progression snapshot of my grandchildren so I could see what they would be like when they were older,” she said.
Then the call came from his doctor.
“He was beside himself talking on the phone, he couldn’t believe this had happened,” Shields said of his doctor.
‘I just say, ‘What? So I’m not going to die? She said, ‘No, you’re not going to die, Toni.’
Even though she has been given a new lease on life, the mother feels conflicted about the news after a week of “ups and downs.”
While she was relieved to hear from the doctor that she was not plagued by cancer, Sheilds said she felt sorry for the patient on the other end of the mishap.
“I’m angry and I want to know how this happened… I also feel really bad for the person whose results it was,” she said.
‘I really feel for them. What I went through, they are going through.
“I’m sure I had a happy ending, but it’s not.”
Shields said the first thing she thought about was her two children (pictured) and grandchildren after receiving the shock diagnosis.
A full review into how the mix-up occurred was announced by Joanne Gibbs, acting group chief operating officer at Health New Zealand Canterbury, who apologized to Ms Shields.
“We sincerely regret that Toni was given an incorrect diagnosis and we have apologized for the significant stress we have caused both Toni and her family,” Ms Gibbs told the Herald.
“It is extremely unusual for a mistake like this to be made.
“We will continue to be in contact with Toni as the investigation into this incident continues, and she is welcome to contact our Radiology team with any further questions or comments she may have.”
