Medical negligence has played a part in one woman’s rampant growth after medical staff missed a tumour on her pituitary gland that caused her to grow to a massive 6 feet, 5 inches in height, though NHS officials and the woman’s personal injury solicitors have yet to come to an agreement on the amount of personal injury compensation she is entitled to.
Kate Woodward, a former drama student who had attained a height of 5 feet, 9 inches by the age of eleven, recently launched a medical negligence personal injury compensation claim against the NHS Trust for Leeds Teaching Hospitals. Ms Woodward claims that her excessive growth is the result of improper treatment at the hands of both the Leeds General Infirmary and the St James’s University Hospital, and has precluded her from becoming a working actor, her childhood dream, as her uncommon height means that she is a poor fit for any sort of cinema or theatre career.
Ms Woodward, who now resides in Sidmouth, Devon, but spent her formative years in Leeds, took legal advice that led to her decision to make a claim against the NHS for £2 million in damages. Her legal team says that the excessively tall woman also suffers from psychological problems and bone abnormalities due to the effect of the tumour on her pituitary gland, all as a result of medical staff neglecting to diagnose the tumour correctly.
The NHS Trust has agreed that it is liable for Ms Woodward’s abnormal growth. However, the amount of damages the NHS is willing to pay is a much reduced £698,000. A hearing which could result in a final figure being decided upon is currently ongoing.