A 14-year-old boy with cancer is among hundreds of hospital patients whose medical procedures have been postponed following a cyber-attack on an NHS provider. Dylan Kjorstad was scheduled to have a tumour on his ribs removed on 6 June at London's Royal Brompton Hospital, but the operation has been put back due to concerns about delays in blood supplies. A ransomware attack on the blood-testing firm Synnovis on 3 June led to disruption to clinical procedures at several London hospitals because the hack meant the company was unable to share information matching blood supplies to patients.
Dylan's father, John Kjorstad, told the BBC his son's condition was "very serious" said it would be "dreadful" if his chances of recovery were put at risk by the delay. Dylan, from Hemel Hempstead in Hertfordshire, was diagnosed with Ewing sarcoma - a type of bone cancer - in January. Since his diagnosis, Dylan has been undergoing two cycles of chemotherapy every month with the aim of shrinking the tumour ahead of surgery.
But two days before the operation, Mr Kjorstad received a call from the Royal Brompton notifying him that surgery would have to be postponed. "It was one of those moments where you're trying to process what's being told to you. It was disbelief," he told the BBC.
"It's such an important, major, surgery, and the person on the other end of the phone - who was very kind and polite - said the reason that it's been cancelled is because of an IT pathology issue." The Royal Brompto.
