Cancer misreading 'NZ-wide'

WELLINGTON - The misreading of cancer biopsies is a nationwide problem going well beyond Gisborne and Wanganui, ACC figures show, but the agency is not reporting the other cases to medical authorities.

ACC has accepted nine claims of medical error after misread cancer biopsy slides from outside Gisborne and Wanganui.

The nine claims since 1992 include two each for gastric, bladder, melanoma, and prostate cancers, and one for another cancer.

Changes to the law in 1998 meant ACC was no longer obliged to report error claims to relevant medical disciplinary bodies.

It would only do so when there were numerous claims of the same procedure going wrong.

- NZPA