Horrifying: Cancer patient in Hungary denied treatment for months dies without care
A cancer patient went untreated for months in a hospital (not even receiving pain relief!), and ultimately died in 2021 without care.
For months, doctors didn’t even ease her pain
In February 2021, Erzsébet was diagnosed with a malignant tumour. She met with her assigned physician for the first time in March, who told her that an oncology team (a group of specialists for her condition) would discuss her case and determine a treatment plan, according to TASZ’s report on 444.hu.
Despite her condition, Erzsébet received no treatment for several months. Beginning in late April, she regularly visited the outpatient centre and was hospitalised several times, but her complaints were not properly addressed. According to her family, at one point, the lack of treatment was attributed to her doctor being on vacation, and hospital staff said they didn’t know how to proceed in the doctor’s absence.
In a letter to the family, the physician called it unacceptable that the absence of care was blamed on his time off. The head of the oncology team also admitted to miscommunication in handling Erzsébet’s treatment. In May, she was offered chemotherapy, but by then her condition had worsened significantly, and she died on 12 May.
Hospital blames patient for her own lack of care
According to the Hungarian Civil Liberties Union (HCLU, or TASZ in Hungarian), the hospital’s discharge report stated that despite no treatment having been administered between diagnosis and Erzsébet’s death, the blame lay with her because she “did not make a decision” regarding the options offered.
With the support of TASZ, the family took legal action, arguing that the hospital violated Erzsébet’s rights to privacy and family life by obstructing her access to care.
The university clinic acknowledged the error and issued a formal written apology. Additionally, hospital leadership met with Erzsébet’s daughter, Ildikó, in person and committed to implementing internal training programs aimed at improving communication among medical staff.
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Read also:
- Worsening trends: Wider gap emerges between public and private healthcare in Hungary
- Hungary tops charts for rising family and healthcare costs: What you need to know
- Alarming reality: How the Hungarian healthcare system is failing patients
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