Margaret Fraser, a 63-year-old grandmother from Buckhaven, Fife, lives with a condition so painful it is known as 'the suicide disease' after shamed neurosurgeon Sam Eljamel botched her treatment. She now fears she will never see justice as a public inquiry into Eljamel's actions faces further delays.
Failed operations and lifelong agony
Fraser was diagnosed with trigeminal neuralgia, a chronic condition causing severe electric shock-like pain on one side of the face. She was initially ecstatic when told that Eljamel, then head of neurosurgery at Ninewells Hospital in Dundee, would operate on her. However, after a failed first operation in 2011 and a botched glycerol injection in 2013, her condition worsened dramatically.
According to Fraser, the 2013 procedure went horribly wrong when Eljamel misplaced the needle, causing the acid to leak into other areas of her face. She now suffers from excruciating pain that makes even smiling, talking, and eating difficult. She relies on medication every two hours, including more than 40 tablets and morphine liquid, just to manage the pain.
Fraser told the Daily Record: 'My illness gets called the suicide disease because the pain is so bad not a lot of people can deal with it. Eljamel went on to make that even worse.' She added: 'It's been 13 years now since that botched operation. Acid has gone into my face so it's totally damaged the nerves. It's irreparable.'
Lack of accountability and inquiry delays
The public inquiry into Eljamel's conduct, which concerns allegations that he harmed as many as 200 patients, is expected to take at least another five years to complete. It has been set back by fire safety concerns at the Edinburgh venue. Recently, Lord Advocate Dorothy Bain told campaigners that despite possible criminal charges being 'under consideration', no case would be heard in Eljamel's absence. The surgeon resigned from his post in May 2014, removed himself from the General Medical Register in 2015, and is believed to have returned to Libya to practise.
Fraser expressed her frustration: 'Nobody is taking any accountability for anything and we're not getting any answers. Every part of it is traumatic. I just feel like giving up because we keep getting knock back after knock back.' She added: 'To hear he is unlikely to face justice here is just another kick in the teeth. He should be jailed but he will never be extradited.'
Impact on daily life
Fraser has undergone countless treatments to ease the pain, including brain simulators, but nothing has worked. She has given a statement to police and attended protests until a stroke last year. She now lives in sheltered housing with a carer and says she has missed out on normal grandmother activities, such as having her grandchildren to stay.
She said: 'I don't feel hopeful for the future about finding anything that's going to help after all this time. We thought we were getting somewhere when they announced the public inquiry, then you see how long that has taken, as well as the police investigation.'
NHS Tayside response
An NHS Tayside spokeswoman said: 'We cannot comment on individual cases due to patient confidentiality. We would encourage any former patient who has concerns about Mr Eljamel to contact the NHS Tayside Patient Liaison Response Team. NHS Tayside is participating fully in The Eljamel Inquiry and its hearings.'
