OTTAWA • A $30-million class-action lawsuit has been brought against The Ottawa Hospital, led by a 60-year-old engineer from Chalk River who says he suffered a recurrence of skin cancer because the hospital didn’t give him the right radiation dose.

According to a statement of claim whose allegations have not been tested in court, David John Watts received radiation treatment for basal cell carcinoma on his nose in March 2006. During a three-year-period that began in November 2004, the claim says, a machine that administers radiation at the Civic campus of The Ottawa Hospital was incorrectly calibrated, and 326 patients, including Mr. Watts, received up to 17 per cent less radiation than was indicated.

The Ottawa Hospital declined to comment on the matter.

“We will review the claim and seek legal advice, but we cannot comment on ongoing litigation,” said spokeswoman Allison Neill in an e-mailed statement.

In Mr. Watts’ case, according to the legal claim, the radiation therapy did not eradicate his cancer and he required invasive surgery that altered the appearance of his nose, damaged surrounding nerves, and made breathing difficult. As principal claimant in the suit, he is seeking damages for the recurrence of cancer, a lesser quality of life and other health effects.

According to the statement of claim filed by the plaintiffs’ lawyer, Thomas Connolly, The Ottawa Hospital realized its mistake on Nov. 22, 2007, and publicly acknowledged it in late April 2008.

It was then, in media coverage, that Mr. Watts found out about the error. He later received a phone call from a representative of the Ottawa Hospital, the statement says.

The claim entered at the Elgin Street courthouse on Dec. 18 identifies as defendants The Ottawa Hospital, Dr. Brenda Clark and Dr. G. Peter Raaphorst, both of whom were heads of the department of medical physics during the three-year period, two unnamed medical physicists, and one unnamed supervisor.

The statement of claim alleges some hospital staff acted with “reckless disregard” by failing to calibrate the radiation machine properly. The claim also alleges that the delay in communicating this information caused prolonged health effects.

“But for the defendants’ negligence, their cancer would not have recurred and they would not have to undergo this additional treatment,” says the statement.

Mr. Watts said he felt compelled to bring the matter into the spotlight because everybody was talking about it, but nobody was doing anything.

“My concern was it took so long for them to inform us, and then they did it by going to the media,” he said. “I’m concerned that there are other people who might be suffering more than I am.”

Mr. Watts, who was recently told there was a 99-per-cent chance he is now cancer-free, said he has great respect for the doctors and nurses who work at the hospital.

“I think they’re very caring, super people. I’ve had no qualms at all during my treatment. They’ve been very informative,” he said. “My problem is with the operational end, and the way they handled it. I’m annoyed because it should have come out sooner.”

Several other plaintiffs are involved in the suit, and Mr. Connolly, the lead counsel, said the phone at the Connolly Obagi firm has been “ringing off the hook” with potential participants.

During the next several months, Mr. Connolly said, he will be gathering medical records and consulting with plaintiffs, some of whom are undergoing medical procedures.

“There are so many different sets of circumstances because cancer is involved. We have an enormous task ahead of us,” he said.

He said the case could be before the courts in the fall of 2009.

Cancer patient sues Ottawa Hospital over low radiation dose