NEWTON, Mass. — The seventh nurse at Newton-Wellesley Hospital to report being diagnosed with a benign brain tumor is pushing for more answers about the numerous cases.
Debbie Connolly, 58, worked on the hospital’s labor and delivery unit from 2005 to 2018.
She told Boston 25 News she went on medical leave after experiencing unexplained balance issues, memory lapses, and changes in her concentration.
The mother of six said she was later terminated after requesting an extension and remains on disability.
“I, as well as everyone else, dismissed it as you’re burnt out. You’re stressed out. There’s a lot of things going on in your life. I had six kids under the age of 18,” said Connolly. “I knew something was different. I just didn’t know what.”
Connolly reached out to two of her friends from the labor and delivery unit after hearing about the cluster of cases.
She said both had benign, non-cancerous brain tumors and later learned that two of her other friends from the fifth-floor unit also received diagnoses.
The Needham native scheduled a cat-scan followed by an MRI for herself, which revealed she had a meningioma in her right frontal lobe.
“My biggest concern, when I found out, was how am I going to tell my children?,” she recalled. “My biggest concern now is that this will remain an unanswered question.”
Connolly said she was asked a few questions when she self-reported her case to the hospital, and that the conversation only lasted for ten minutes.
She believes nobody is actively screening former employees.
“It’s not about blame. It’s about answers,” she told Boston 25 News. “The effort I feel now is to make this go away as fast as possible.”
Newton Wellesley Hospital officials said an investigation looked at environmental factors and found no evidence linking tumors to the work environment.
A hospital spokesperson sent the following statement to Boston 25 News:
<i>“We were recently made aware of this additional self-reported case of a former staff member’s benign brain tumor. The health and wellbeing of our staff, clinicians, and patients is our top priority and we continue to evaluate any and all information provided to us. As we’ve stated before, we have conducted a thorough investigation into our environment after reports of brain tumors in individuals who have worked in our labor and delivery and post-partum care units at some point over the past 23 years. Based on these findings, we are confident that the environment is safe.”</i>
Connolly is scheduled to have another MRI in three months.
She’s trying to remain optimistic about the situation and has been told the benign tumor can be removed if there are any changes.
“If I have to have surgery, I have to have surgery,” she added. “It’s not that it’s a big deal. I just can’t think beyond what’s the next step.”
Newton-Wellesley officials previously said they brought in environmental experts to scrutinize water, air quality, radiation levels, and cleaning chemicals that staff members on the fifth floor may have been exposed to.
A probe into the cases expanded last month when the Massachusetts Department of Public Health joined the Occupational Safety and Health Administration to observe working conditions on the maternity unit
This is a developing story. Check back for updates as more information becomes available.
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