By Faye Mayern
A young woman found out she had cancer when she put her medical results through ChatGPT after they were mistakenly released early.
Pippa Collins-Gould, 29, used the artificial intelligence chatbot to decode medical jargon published to her MyChart – a system which uploads health records.
ChatGPT interpreted her results as thyroid cancer – a diagnosis her consultant later confirmed following the removal of a lump on her neck.
Pippa, from Cambridge, said: “ChatGPT had explained it to me more than my own consultant.
“I literally sent the whole report in and it was so easy. ChatGPT will give statistics and how rare things are.
“I’m not saying people should go by it all the time, but it was the only thing that answered my questions.
“I know the NHS is under strain and my care has been amazing – but my results should never had been released early.”
Pippa went to her GP with a recurring chest infection in April 2025 when her doctor noticed the left side of her neck looked abnormal.
In June, she had an ultrasound which found a lump on her thyroid which then became painful, swelling up to a golf ball.
Pippa, who works in childcare, even went to A&E in pain – but says she was told that it was ‘probably nothing’.
However, results from a biopsy could not be determined and Pippa, who is also a full-time student, was told it needed to be removed within two weeks.
Pippa said: “When I was told the lump needed to be removed, alarm bells were ringing.
“I just knew in my gut it had to be cancer.”
In July 2025, Pippa had the lump removed at Addenbrookes’ Hospital and said she could not fault the care of the healthcare professionals.
She was left with a 2.5cm long scar across her throat.
But when Pippa was at work, she discovered the test results from the surgery had been uploaded to her health records.
She said: “It was infuriating because they didn’t even know they’d released them.
“I called the reception team and she was confused – she said ‘they shouldn’t have released them to you because you’re on a cancer pathway’.
“It was showing potential cancer and nobody had even noticed until I called to chase my appointment with the consultant.
“I was really quite lost with what to do.”
Pippa turned to ChatGPT, inputting the results, which informed her she had been diagnosed with encapsulated angioinvasive follicular thyroid cancer.
She later got an appointment with her consultant who confirmed the diagnosis.
Pippa believes she is now in the all clear, following removal of the lump and according again to her MyChart, but wants to raise awareness of the early release.
She said: “If you have an illness, you want to know everything you possibly can.
“I had cancer when I didn’t know it and when I knew it, I didn’t have it.
“I’m extremely grateful. Some people can have entire thyroids removed and have to take lifelong medications.
“I am also grateful for the NHS. It is under strain but they were so quick from my initial GP appointment through to the removal.
“But accidentally releasing cancer results and not acknowledging it is not okay.”
A CUH spokesperson said: “We offer our sincere apologies to Ms Collins-Gould for the way she received her results via MyChart, after having treatment to remove the cancer.
“It is standard practice for our dedicated staff to deliver cancer diagnoses in person during an appointment, alongside access to appropriate support.
“For results where cancer may be confirmed, a 21-day period is built into the app before results are then visible to patients.
“We regret that on this occasion, the diagnosis was not conveyed in person within this time frame.”
SYMPTOMS OF THYROID CANCER:
Neck lumpVoice changesBreathing issuesPainSwollen lymph nodesChronic cough
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