BARNSLEY Hospital bosses are refusing to accept a complaint from a breast cancer patient who was told she was not ill by a consultant surgeon.

The doctor was later suspended amid allegations of botched breast reconstructive operations. Dawn, 44, of Queens Drive, Dodworth, was at high risk of developing the disease due to her family history, which she explained to breast specialist Dr Puvan Markandoo.

But when Miss Markandoo examined a lump in Dawn's breast and dimpling of the surrounding skin in October 2005 she told her there was nothing to worry about as it was just fatty tissue.

She did not send her for a biopsy.

About a year later, after a routine mammogram, Dawn was told the lump was cancerous and the disease had spread to her lymph nodes.

Staff at the hospital told her how to complain about the original diagnosis but acting chief executive David Hicks then sent a letter saying her grievance could not be investigated.

Dr Hicks admitted that Dawn may find the decision ‘disappointing’ but claimed, because a probe into Miss Markandoo had already begun, NHS rules prevented the hospital from dealing with her complaint. His letter added: “Investigation of your complaint will only be taken forward when the Trust is assured that it will not compromise or prejudice the investigation taking place.”