Hospital apologises after delayed brain tumour diagnosis costs patient years of life
A Galway hospital issued a court apology for misreading MRI scans in 2013 and 2016, which postponed the detection of Mary Keane’s brain tumour until 2023.
Mary Keane, a 49-year-old Westport resident, suffered severe daily headaches and received MRI scans at University Hospital Galway in 2013 and 2016, which she claims were misinterpreted, obscuring a serious brain lesion. The hospital’s general manager, Chris Kane, read a formal apology in the High Court, admitting the care deficiencies that delayed her tumour diagnosis until a 2023 scan revealed an advanced lesion. Keane, who uses a wheelchair, settled her lawsuit against the HSE, describing the apology as “disgusting” yet acknowledging it as something she finally received.
Her counsel argued that correct reporting could have led to neurosurgical intervention in 2013 or 2016, potentially extending her life by five years. After the 2023 diagnosis, she was transferred to Beaumont Hospital Dublin, where a biopsy confirmed an inoperable tumour and she began radiotherapy. Judge Leonie Reynolds noted the difficulty Keane endured throughout the process.
Why it matters
The case highlights how diagnostic errors can dramatically affect patient outcomes and underscores the need for rigorous radiology standards.
In this story
