'We will never give up on anybody' | Watch the final episode of Saving Lives in Cardiff on Tuesday
20.09.2024
The final episode of six-part documentary series Saving Lives in Cardiff will air on Tuesday at 9pm on BBC One Wales and BBC Two.
Last year, Cardiff and Vale University Health Board opened its doors to the Label1 film crew to shine a light on some of our world-leading surgeons and their teams as they seek to transform the lives of their patients against the backdrop of the longest waiting times in history.
Over the past five weeks, Saving Lives in Cardiff has shown the public the difficult decisions clinicians make every day as they choose who to treat next, and explored patients’ emotional journeys as they undergo life-changing operations. This week, the final episode will introduce three new surgeons and specialities.
At the University Hospital Llandough, the Breast Centre is one of the busiest departments across the Health Board with the team receiving 140 new and urgent referrals every week. Unfortunately, clinical lead and breast surgeon Ms Eleri Davies is well acquainted with her next patient. Michaela, 55, has already undergone a double mastectomy but has sadly discovered a new lump in her chest.
Around 10% of patients will see breast cancer return and after a challenging course of chemotherapy, Eleri has a small amount of time to operate on Michaela and remove all cancerous tissue and lymph nodes. The urgency of Michaela’s case makes her a priority. Having already undergone treatment for a decade — including a double mastectomy, her family eagerly wait to find out if she will finally be cancer free.
Eleri said: “Michalea’s journey is proof that we do have lots of treatment for breast cancer and even if you’ve had breast cancer and it comes back, there’s still more that we can do. We will never give up on anybody.”
Also at University Hospital Llandough is 68-year-old grandfather Garry who has been waiting patiently for a new hip for more than two years and the longer Garry waits for his surgery, the more complex it could become with worsening arthritis. The hospital is a difficult place for Garry to come back to, having sadly lost his wife to cancer only last year.
Mr Phil Thomas left the muddy rugby pitches behind and is now a leading orthopedic surgeon. Speaking of the episode, Phil said: “There is a lot of negativity surrounding the NHS and it’s important to show the positives when we can. We’re lucky with hip surgery that most of the time it’s a good outcome for patients — we are changing a person’s quality of life and it’s good for the public to see that.”
At the University Hospital of Wales, 53-year-old Sharon is waiting to be operated on by Ear, Nose and Throat (ENT) consultant Mr Stuart Quine. Sharon has a rare benign tumour in her neck and it is essential that Stuart operates on the mum of three before she becomes unable to swallow or breathe.
Due to the complexity of the tumour, two specialties and three surgeons join forces for the surgery. Their main concern is the tumour lies on the carotid artery and one wrong move could cause Sharon to experience a catastrophic stroke.
Stuart said: “I think it's important to show people what we do as a unit. Surgery is a progressive, always learning practice and you become used to taking increasing levels of stress and difficulty, and you share that responsibility as a team as well.
“When you work for the NHS, you often meet people at their lowest and a lot of job satisfaction comes from creating good outcomes. There aren’t many jobs out there where you can do something for somebody, and their levels of gratitude are higher than you could possibly imagine.”
Watch the final episode of Saving Lives in Cardiff on Tuesdays at 9pm on BBC One Wales and BBC Two. If you’ve missed an episode, catch up on BBC iPlayer now.