I am,Toronto woman after delayed diagnosis by Trillium Health
A 28-year-old Toronto woman has died less than four months after learning that she had cancer — and that her diagnosis and treatment had been delayed because of an alleged hospital error.
Houda Rafle passed away early Wednesday, just as she was starting legal action against Trillium Health Partners and a radiologist after he misread her CT scan and failed to see a tumour sitting above her heart, she says in a statement of claim filed in court on Nov. 12.
Rafle was scheduled to do an interview with the Star the following day. But the young television producer’s health took a turn for the worse and she ended up in hospital, where she remained until she died.
“There are no words to describe the horrible impact the events giving rise to this action have had on my life and the lives of my family,” she wrote in a press release she had prepared with her lawyer.
“But I am not doing this because I am angry or because I want to lay blame. The truth is I am concerned for many others whose lives can be destroyed if nothing changes.”
The hospital declined to say Wednesday whether it had filed a statement of defence.
“We are deeply saddened by this news. On behalf of the hospital, our thoughts are with the family at this very difficult time,” said hospital spokesperson Carol Kotacka.
On March 5, Rafle went to Trillium complaining of shortness of breath, nausea and vomiting. A CT scan of her heart revealed a 1.6 cm. mass, but radiologist Dr. Ivo “Ivan” Slezic Dr. Ivo “Ivan” Slezic failed to notice it, says her statement of claim.
It wasn’t until she returned to the hospital five months later, complaining of a persistent cough, that the mass was detected on a new CT. But by this time it had grown to 2.5 cm. and spread to her lungs. Rifle was diagnosed with stage IV angiosarcoma, which also eventually spread to her brain.
Trillium had restricted Slezic’s hospital privileges in the meantime.
The hospital subsequently brought in outside experts to review 3,500 CT scans and mammograms, which were originally read by Slezic. That process is ongoing, Kotacka said.
Rafle died at 2:11 a.m. Wednesday in the intensive care unit Toronto General Hospital surrounded by her six siblings. They are inconsolable.
“She was in my oldest brother’s arms for her last breath and she had a smile on her face. She looked absolutely beautiful. She was very, very peaceful,” her sister Deeqa, 23, said through tears.
They family believes Rafle would still be alive today if she had been diagnosed earlier.
“It’s absolutely unfair . . . misdiagnosis, 28, healthy before that, my role model, my best friend my big sister. It’s a lot,” Deeqa cried.
Rafle’s story has touched many, including Health Minister Deb Matthews. She took the unusual step of a making a personal phone call to the young woman after seeing her in the media.
“It’s not something I usually do. In her case, I saw her do an interview . . . I thought her spirit was beautiful and I wanted to reach out to her so I did,” Matthews said.
“It’s so sad, just so sad . . . My heart just broke for her,” the minister continued.
Matthews said she expects to soon make an announcement on improving quality assurance in radiology across the province.
Lawyer Duncan Embury said his client, Rafle, launched a negligence lawsuit because she wanted changes in a health system in which she and other Ontarians put their faith.
“She lost her life a as result of failure of the medical system,” he said. “It’s about accountability in our system. When it comes to disease processes like this, time matters.”
Rafle’s statement of claim alleges the hospital was negligent in not alerting to her to potential problems with her scan immediately after restricting Slezic’s privileges in April.
It also claims that Slezic should not have been practicing medicine because “his abilities were impaired by fatigue, medical conditions or other factors.”
Slezic had just returned to work after undergoing chemotherapy for cancer.
Deeqa said the family is too distraught at this point to even think about whether they will continue the lawsuit on Houda’s behalf.
But Rafle’s own words, penned on her press release, advise other patients to advocate strongly for themselves in the health system:
“Anyone who has any troubling symptoms should understand that they need to question the doctors and get second opinions to seek accurate test results. A proper diagnosis and timely medical care is absolutely critical if you have cancer. Early diagnosis can save your life.”
Abdi "Rest in Peace" Johnson
