Cancer patient informed only this week about retesting: Eastern Health

A breast cancer patient learned only a few days ago that her tissue samples had been retested, Newfoundland and Labrador's largest health authority has confirmed.

Eastern Health, which said last year it had notified all patients involved in a widespread review of hormone receptor testing, said it is very concerned that a patient only recently had learned about retesting.

In a statement issued early Thursday evening, Eastern Health said chief operating officer Pat Pilgrim is investigating the matter "through a number of avenues."

The case of the unidentified patient was raised Thursday in the house of assembly, where Opposition leader Yvonne Jones described the woman's anguish.

"She was very upset, very disturbed," said Jones, who did not speak with the woman directly, but learned about it from a friend.

Jones said she was told the woman was contacted by her physician, who informed the woman that her tissue samples were retested.

"This was the first time that she had been notified and the first time that she knew that she was even being considered as part of this retesting group," said Jones.

The revelation comes amid a judicial inquiry, which began hearing evidence in March about what went wrong with hormone receptor testing between 1997 and 2005.

The tests are done to help determine whether a breast cancer patient would benefit from a drug like Tamoxifen, an antihormonal therapy that has been clinically shown to improve a patient's chances of survival.

Eastern Health began retesting samples in 2005, once it learned that there were problems with the hormone testing program.

Minister testifies on releasing inaccurate data

The latest revelation surfaced as Health Minister Ross Wiseman testified Thursday that he inadvertently gave the public wrong information in May 2007, when he said that the samples of all affected patients had been retested.

"[The information was] inaccurate and was not complete, and I repeated it in the house of assembly based on the strength of what was shared with me as being fact," Wiseman testified.

Asked by co-counsel Sandra Chaytor if Wiseman repeated the error, Wiseman replied, "I repeated it after this date many times because I was being assured that, in fact, it was done, but we now know that what I shared in good faith based on briefing in the house has turned out to be inaccurate."

Wiseman said a review launched in June 2007 led to a more comprehensive understanding of the numbers of possible patients involved in the matter, which also determined that some patients had not in fact been contacted by last spring.

Last month, before the inquiry began, Wiseman said the external review showed that 383 patients had been given incorrect results from hormone receptor tests.

Of those, 108 patients have since died. The inquiry has not heard evidence on whether any of the patients might have lived longer or still be alive with more appropriate treatment.