Mr Drostan Cheetham

Written by a patient at Watford General Hospital

Mr Cheetham is an outstanding surgeon. We first met him three weeks before my scheduled surgery. I was diagnosed with bowel cancer (found from the bowel screening programme offered to everyone aged 55) and Mr Cheetham explained that the 5cm tumour was 12cm inside me and I'd need keyhole surgery to remove it. He gave me a quick inspection. His warm, friendly, cheerful manner along with the straightforward explanation he gave of the procedure inspired a lot of confidence. And this confidence was well placed. Mr Cheetham is a seasoned expert. He answered all our questions patiently and thoroughly. He explained the operation with a diagram in simple terms that we could understand. He gave me the possible scenarios of outcome (50/50 on having a stoma, possible chemotherapy if the cancer had spread). He outlined the risks (which I believe all doctors and surgeons have to do these days) but still I left feeling very happy to be in his hands. He left me in no doubt that he is thorough, careful, skilful and runs his team extremely well in theatre. He didn't have to explicitly state this - I could tell. He inspires trust - he clearly knows what he is doing! We met Mr Cheetham again, briefly, an hour or so before my operation. This was to sign my consent. Again, he made me and my husband feel very relaxed and happy. His cheerful confidence made me realise here was a man who had done this lots of time before, very successfully. A student asked my permission to watch the operation, which I gladly gave. Later in hospital, this student told me the operation lasted three hours and Mr Cheetham 'was amazing!'. Prior to the operation, the care from the nurses and the anaesthesia team was absolutely superb. Their kindness and good humour was so helpful. I felt completely peaceful going into surgery. Mr Cheetham phoned my husband immediately after my surgery - my family all felt that they were kept very well informed. I spent four nights in hospital and received incredible care and encouragement from the nurses there. Mr Cheetham visited me along with Laura Payne, the bowel nurse. Both were happy with my recovery and gave me good advice. I saw Mr Cheetham again two weeks after my surgery. I have been so impressed with my stomach - the keyhole surgery he performed was so neat and is healing very well. The resection join has held and I needed no stoma. He removed 28 lymph nodes (when only 12 are required) to thoroughly check to see if the cancer had spread. I am very fortunate that it hasn't, so I don't need chemotherapy. What an incredible surgeon. I count myself extremely lucky to have been placed into his care.

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Listening

Written by a patient at Watford General Hospital

From day one I knew Mr Cheetham was going to fix me due to his experienced, warm nature and professional approach. I have now had two operations under his care. I'm just 5 days post-op since my last one, all is going well and I'm on the road to recovery. Mr Cheetham managed my expectations, explains things very well and listened to me. He is quite frank, honest, caring, warm hearted and a genius! Highly recommend his care and team without hesitation. Thank you

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Listening

Written by a patient at Watford General Hospital

From the moment I was told I had bowel cancer I felt like I was free falling. Then I met Mr Cheetham and immediately he caught me. He explained what was happening, with diagrams!, what was going to happen, and what we can expect following the operation. I felt safe and secure! Immediately trusted him despite having just met him! Mr Cheetham is confident, knowledgeable, personable, just an all round brilliant man who inspired confidence in my family and I at what was a very difficult, challenging and emotional time. The man is a genius and I am very grateful to him.

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Listening

Written by a patient at Watford General Hospital

It is only four weeks since Mr Cheetham completed an operation by key hole surgery to remove a tumour from my rectum ; both my wife and I would like to place on record our huge appreciation for the way he has handled this matter. From the first time we met him, he immediately inspired confidence. His explanations of the diagnosis, using easy to follow jargon free language and a diagram, together with the necessary surgery, were both clear and unambiguous. He gave us time to ask questions all of which he listened to and responded with patience as well as good humour, where appropriate. He has that wonderful ability to put patients at ease, whilst recognising just how stressful the situation is for those directly involved. I particularly admired the way he encouraged me to focus on the immediate next steps and not hypothetical situations that could arise in the future. Very soon after the operation I was largely pain free and quickly started walking. I am currently managing to go out for a walk every day. Whilst I have no technical understanding of the magic worked by Mr Cheetham, I am sure that his great skill with key hole surgery has contributed enormously to this speedy recovery. In summary, Mr Cheetham is at the very top of his game and having been diagnosed with this disease, I am glad he is the surgeon who took on my case. Thanks once again. It would be remiss of me not to give my appreciation to the specialist nurses who work closely with Mr Cheetham. They have a lot of detailed knowledge and also play a vital role in offering support, care and information throughout the process from start to finish. They have been able to help me on numerous occasions and offer reassurance where needed. Thanks to Siobhan, Andrea and Linda

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Listening

Written by a patient at Watford General Hospital

I am very lucky to have been appointed Dr Cheetham as my surgeon after my diagnosis of Crohns disease. In May 2018 he carried out a right hemicolectomy, I was so grateful that he managed to do such a neat job and he really tried his best to minimize scarring. Despite the risks everything went perfectly and my quality of life has improved tenfold. Dr Cheetham is extremely knowledgeable and professional but manages to also be friendly and personable at the same time. I trust him with my life (literally) he is a fantastic surgeon who truly cares about his patients.

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