A senior NHS Tayside oncologist refused to be operated on by disgraced surgeon Sam Eljamel and travelled to London instead when she worked for the health board.
Dr Phyllis Windsor, 71, opted to go down south for a major procedure due to concerns over Mr Eljamel after she was diagnosed with a pituitary tumour in 2006.
The cancer specialist, who was employed by NHS Tayside for 28 years, told The Courier she didn’t trust the medic due to his treatment plan for her and found him arrogant.
Mr Eljamel told Dr Windsor he would fully remove her tumour even though she knew this was not possible.
The surgeon said he would then give her photodynamic therapy, a treatment Dr Windsor says was not appropriate for her tumour.
Speaking publicly about it for the first time, she said: “The tumour was operable but complete removal would have been impossible as it had grown into the bones at the base of my skull.
“The standard treatment option would have been a good partial removal followed by radiotherapy to prevent recurrence.”
Mr Eljamel repeatedly botched operations and left patients with life-changing injuries when he worked for NHS Tayside between 1995 and 2013.
‘I was fortunate’
Dr Windsor said: “I didn’t trust the guy.
“There was no discussion. He was just telling me what I would have done. I thought – no way.
“I don’t think he knew what he was doing. I wasn’t going to let him anywhere near my head.
“Thank goodness I didn’t let him near me, now these stories have come out. I was fortunate I had the knowledge to not trust him.”
Campaigners are pushing for a full public inquiry into why Mr Eljamel was able to get away with harming patients for so long.
Whistleblowers claim NHS Tayside bosses were aware about concerns over him in 2009, four years before his eventual suspension.
Humza Yousaf’s SNP government has not committed to a public probe despite patients insisting it is the best way to get answers.
A Fife victim of Mr Eljamel, who long supported the SNP, heckled the first minister during his party’s independence convention in Dundee.
Dr Windsor, who stays in Perthshire village Kinfauns, backs the push for a public inquiry and believes colleagues must have been aware of what Mr Eljamel was doing.
She said: “I feel very sorry for his victims. Most people have complete trust in doctors.
“How on earth none of them knew how badly he was operating on patients is beyond me.
“They would have been there to see what he was doing. None of them held him to account, from what I can see.”
As a past employee, Dr Windsor gave a scathing assessment of NHS Tayside and said she actively avoids the health board now.
‘Toxic culture’
She said: “I think the problem is NHS Tayside possibly needs to be taken into special measures. I don’t think they’re capable of running a hospital.
“I don’t go to Tayside for any of my follow-up appointments. I go to Glasgow and Edinburgh. I would not see anybody at NHS Tayside.
“I think the whole culture in Tayside is toxic. That’s certainly what I left.”
An NHS Tayside spokesperson said: “Due to patient confidentiality we cannot comment on individual cases.
“We would encourage anyone who has concerns about Professor Eljamel to contact the patient liaison response team.
“NHS Tayside is committed to supporting a culture that promotes dignity and respect, openness, honesty and responsibility.
“All staff are encouraged to speak up if they have concerns and there are many ways in which staff can do this.”
