Frimley Park Hospital apologises over girl's cancer diagnosis delay

A 15-year-old girl has been given months to live after her cancer was misdiagnosed as a psychological pain condition, her family has said.

Olivia Maunder from Bordon, Hampshire, began to suffer from back pain in 2020.

Doctors at Frimley Park Hospital in Surrey diagnosed complex regional pain syndrome (CRPS), a psychological condition, after an initial MRI scan missed the tumour, the family said.

The hospital said it was very sorry for the cancer diagnosis delay.

In a statement issued through lawyers, Olivia said she was left in "indescribable agony" following the scan in March 2021.

She said: "In the three months when I was being told I was making everything up, the pain was so bad that I wanted to kill myself.

"I was in so much agony that I didn't sleep. I was screaming constantly, kicking my legs and hitting my back like I was a crazy person."

Olivia, then aged 13, said she was given no medication because her pain was deemed to be in her mind.

The spinal tumour was diagnosed following a second scan. Subsequently, in late 2022, she was told the cancer was terminal, the family said.

Olivia's mother Carol said: "We told the doctors so many times how much pain she was in.

"She was screaming in pain but was asked 'have you tried a mindfulness app?'"

Olivia's sister Victoria is raising money to make her last few months as special as possible.

A serious incident report revealed significant failings in the hospital's care of Olivia, the family's lawyer Jeanette Van-Cauter said.

In a statement, the hospital's medical director Dr Timothy Ho said: "We are very sorry for the considerable distress caused by the delay in diagnosing Olivia's cancer and have met with Olivia and her family to share the results of our thorough investigation.

"We are committed to learning from the investigation and improving services and will support Olivia and her family as best we can at this difficult time."