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Back in January 2015, 42-year-old Helen Bolton noticed that there was a strange lump forming in her gum. It gave her slight pain, but was nothing serious. She decided to put herself on the waiting list to see a dentist, and then paid it very little attention otherwise.
Over time, the pain only got progressively worse. Bolton kept reaching out to the dental service, but they could never give her a firm appointment time.
In 2016 alone, Bolton re-contacted her dentist over 15 times to ask for an earlier, definite appointment date. Her request was never granted.
Come November 2016, Bolton’s tooth pain had escalated and she began to experience flu symptoms. Fed up with waiting, she decided to see her doctor for medical help instead. There, she was given antibiotics.
But just a week later, she had to ask a friend to take her to the hospital.
On December 5, 2016, Bolton was diagnosed with endocarditis and sepsis. Sepsis is a potentially fatal complication of contracting bacterial infections. Endocarditis is a condition where the inner lining in the heart becomes inflamed due to a bacterial infection.
After suffering for two years, Bolton finally learned that the mass that had been growing in her jaw was a bacteria-filled cyst that had slowly traveled through her body until it came to affect her heart.
Just before Christmas, Bolton finally received the medical attention that she needed — though it was a far more extensive procedure than the one she would have required two years prior.
Bolton had to undergo an 11-and-a-half-hour surgery to remove a 3-centimeter by 3-centimeter mass that had been obstructing her heart, and is now waiting to see if she has to get two of her teeth removed from complications of the bacterial infection.
Although Bolton was able to spend Christmas safely at home with her family, she’s infuriated that it took so long for the medical system to get her the treatment and assistance she needed to get better. She is currently hoping to press charges against the NHS in the UK for the terrible experience she had.
