Overview
- Kerry Pugh’s June 2018 smear, which showed severe cell changes, was wrongly reported as normal, resulting in no specialist referral.
- University Hospitals of North Midlands NHS Trust formally admitted the error following legal submissions and issued an apology to the family.
- The trust said a correct pathway would have led to diagnosis by the end of August 2018, whereas cancer was identified around 15–18 months later at stage four.
- Chief executive Dr Simon Constable said UHNM no longer operates the screening service and pledged to learn from the incident for wider laboratory services.
- Her husband, Stephen Pugh, represented by Irwin Mitchell, is pursuing compensation and is urging women to attend screening during Cervical Cancer Prevention Week.