A doctor whose botched surgery on a cancer patient at Aberdeen Royal Infirmary led to her losing her breast could be back on the wards within weeks.
Dr Mutasim Abdul Settar Mohammed, who was not a breast surgeon, was suspended from practising medicine for two years after a tribunal ruled he was not competent to perform the operation.
The tribunal heard that despite cutting out double the amount of breast tissue required, he failed to remove the cancerous growth and the woman had to endure a second operation by another surgeon.
She was left with a “deformed” breast which was later removed.
Dr Mohammed is due to appear before a Medical Practitioners’ Tribunal Service [MPTS] hearing next month to find out if his medical registration will be restored.
If successful, he could be back working as a surgeon by January 11.
A previous tribunal hearing in 2012 found ten charges against the doctor proven, including a charge that he removed an “unnecessarily large” amount of tissue from the woman’s left breast.
An expert told the hearing the tumour did not have to be removed by surgery at all, and it could have been treated by radiotherapy.
Dr Mohammed specialised in colorectal surgery but was employed at ARI as a general surgeon.
An NHS Grampian spokesman said: “Dr Mutasim Mohammed worked with NHS Grampian and was employed through an agency to provide cover. He no longer works for the organisation.”