Distressed patient in dark over new nose

An elderly woman whose face is hideously disfigured from cancer surgery is still waiting for a false nose so she can go out in public, says National MP John Carter.

The 72-year-old Kaitaia woman, who does not want to be named, was told she would be contacted by Middlemore Hospital about a false nose by last month, but has since heard nothing.

Mr Carter said an 18-year-old man who lost his nose in a lab explosion while manufacturing the illegal drug methamphetamine, or P, got a replacement nose within six weeks.

"It's a disgrace. For nine months now this woman has been living with a large hole in her face," he said. "Understandably, she is afraid to leave her house. She is embarrassed, she is in extreme distress."

The woman's Kaitaia doctor, Cecil Williams, said she was a "lovely lady" who lost her husband of 51 years shortly before being diagnosed with invasive skin cancer last year.

Surgery removed a large part of her face and left a hole where her nose should be. The Herald has seen photos of the woman which show extensive disfigurement.

The woman had declined reconstructive plastic surgery which would have required another round of painful operations, but was grateful she would at least be given a false nose, Dr Williams said.

"It's a cheap and easy option but they haven't even given her that."

Northland District Health Board spokesperson Anne Curtis said Whangarei Hospital had spoken with the woman this week but there was little that could be done until she could got her appointment at Middlemore. Counties Manukau said it had no records of the woman but it was possible that she was treated at Middlemore as a referral from the Auckland District Health Board.