A woman who lost a breast after an alleged delay in diagnosis by a cancer specialist has won a £50,000 High Court settlement.

And yesterday medical secretary Christine Melton, of Coates Quay, Chelmsford, issued a warning to other women to trust their own bodies after claiming her right breast was removed unnecessarily.

Mrs Melton, a mother-of-three, settled her compensation bid after claiming that a delay in the diagnosis of breast cancer led to an unnecessary mastectomy and six months of chemotherapy treatment.

Speaking after a brief hearing at the High Court, London, on Monday the 50-year-old said: "The facts of chemotherapy are quite horrendous.

"There are problems with my arm now, because of the removal of lymph glands. The problems are ongoing, its just something that will never go away."

She added: "I feel there is a warning out there that other women should make sure they are getting all the best treatment and if they are not sure then to ask for another opinion.

"A lot of people are not aware of the procedures which should be undertaken when you find a lump. Most women know their own bodies, they need to trust themselves.

"With hindsight I should have got a second opinion but you just assume they know best."

Mrs Melton had sued consultant surgeon and cancer specialist Michael Morgan, who practised at premises at Back Lane, Sheering, near Harlow, at the time of the incident.

She had claimed the cancer should have been diagnosed when she went to see Mr Morgan in July 1993 after discovering a hard pea-sized lump.

She said by the time she returned to see Mr Morgan in February 1994 the lump had grown to the size of a small orange and she was left with little choice but to have a mastectomy, followed by six months of chemotherapy.

Speaking in court, Mrs Melton's counsel Duncan Pratt told Mr Justice Butterfield that his client's claim stemmed from "an alleged delay in the diagnosis of breast cancer".

He said in 1993 there was a failure to properly adopt a triple check procedure involving clinical examination, aspiration of the breast and imaging of her breast."

But he added: "The fact of the matter is that the parties have come to terms."

Mr Morgan denied all liability in the case and the settlement was agreed without any admission of liability. He declined to make any statement following the settlement.

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