Thousands could be wrongly diagnosed with serious conditions due to major NHS blunder
Thousands of NHS patients could be being wrongly diagnosed with health conditions due to inaccurate and misleading blood test results, an alarming investigation has found.
Synnovis, a blood analyst provider for almost 200 GP surgeries and six hospitals in London, is failing to deliver accurate results 'on a daily basis', medics say.
Dozens of emails sent by the firm, who makes £2 billion from the NHS, show it has repeatedly apologised to GPs since 2021 for incorrect test results relating to diseases including diabetes and malaria.
Doctors claim it is now 'an everyday concern' for them, with the problem 'nothing short of a national scandal'.
According to the BBC, who carried out the probe, issues with incorrect blood test results were also leading to unnecessary hospital referrals and wasted appointments.
Synnovis today apologised for the 'distress, inconvenience and upset' it has caused but claimed the incorrect tests represented just a slither of the tens of thousands they process every day.
It comes less than a year after the same firm was targeted by hacking group Qilin, believed to be based in Russia, who published the stolen detailed medical histories of hundreds of thousands of NHS patients online.
The cyber criminals also stopped doctors from accessing vital health data, forcing hospitals to cancel almost 2,000 operations and blood transfusions.
Synnovis, a lab service provider for almost 200 GP surgeries and six hospitals in London , is failing to deliver accurate results 'on a daily basis', medics say
It comes less than a year after the same firm was targeted by hacking group Qilin, believed to be based in Russia, who published the stolen detailed medical histories of hundreds of thousands of NHS patients online
Synnovis has delivered pathology services for Guy's and St Thomas' and King's College Hospital NHS Foundation Trusts since 2021.
More than a dozen GPs who spoke anonymously for professional reasons at the two trusts said they could no longer trust the company.
One GP added: 'It would [previously] never cross our minds that a blood test might not be reliable. This is now an everyday concern.
'The current problems with Synnovis is nothing short of a national scandal.'
Michelle Drage, CEO of Londonwide LMCs, the body that represents and supports GPs across the capital, said the problems were 'happening on a daily basis, on a clinic-by-clinic basis'.
'We do not believe we can rely on Synnovis for accuracy. Our GPs have lost faith and trust in that service – that's a horrible situation to be in.'
In one case the BBC was told about, an elderly man who was caring for his wife with dementia needlessly spent hours in A&E due to problems with his test.
Another, Kemi — a 17-year-old student who began to experience heart palpitations, fatigue and breathlessness six months ago — was sent incorrect results after having a test at her GP.
Synnovis has delivered pathology services for Guy's and St Thomas' and King's College Hospital NHS Foundation Trusts since 2021 (pictured: King's College Hospital)
More than a dozen GPs who spoke anonymously for professional reasons at the two trusts said they could no longer trust the company (pictured: Guys and St Thomas' Hospital)
She claimed her blood test results showed her potassium levels were too high.
Yet, when she visited her GP to discuss the results she was told they were within a normal range but the result was found because her blood sample was unusable as it had waited too long to be processed.
'I'm really stuck. I'm depressed, I'm anxious that something's going to happen to me before I get a diagnosis,' she said.
'I am worried that I am going to end up seriously hurt because I can't get the diagnosis I need.'
High potassium levels in the blood can point to serious health issues, such as heart rhythm disturbances that could prove fatal if left untreated.
Because of this, GPs said they could not ignore blood test results that indicate high potassium — even if they believe them to be incorrect — and were obliged to refer patients immediately to A&E.
One GP said: 'I'm probably sending a couple of patients to A&E a week because of results I suspect to be faulty.
'Since Synnovis took over pathology services for south-east London, it's pretty much been a catalogue of disasters.
It comes as the firm was targeted by a gang of hackers in June who stole NHS patient information including names, dates of birth and other private information and published it online. Pictured, lists of staff members roles, place of work and personal and work telephone numbers published seen by MailOnline
One of the spreadsheets published online by hacker group Qilin contained detailed medical notes alongside patients' personal data
'We're almost second-guessing the pathology system and it's something that never used to happen.'
It comes as the firm was targeted by a gang of hackers in June who stole NHS patient information including names, dates of birth and other private information and published it online.
The cyber attack caused chaos in the capital after IT systems were effectively made useless, with the group demanding a £40 million ransom.
Some of the data seen by MailOnline included dates of birth, NHS numbers, test results and staff information such as personal mobile numbers for patients at King's College Hospital NHS Foundation Trust and Guy's and St Thomas' NHS Foundation Trust.
Spreadsheets also contained detailed results of tests for cancer cells, with notes regarding named patients' treatment, including operations, chemotherapy and radiotherapy — as well as references to switching terminally ill patients to palliative care.
Others showed routine test results for young babies, including blood screening for conditions such as sickle cell disease and cystic fibrosis.
According to a statement released by NHS England in October, 10,152 acute outpatient appointments and 1,710 elective procedures were postponed as a result of the cyberattack.
In its statement today, Synnovis said it offered more than 6,000 different types of test, for six hospitals and 191 GP practices across 249 sites.
'While we understand that any error at all can cause patient and practitioner distress, erroneous Synnovis tests account for significantly less than 0.001 per cent of the 150,000 tests we process per day.'
It added: 'We are very aware that this has been an extremely challenging and sometimes distressing period for patients and front-line NHS colleagues and are incredibly sorry for the inconvenience and upset caused to those affected.'
