A Medical Council fitness to practise inquiry has opened into allegations of professional misconduct against a GP in Artane in Dublin.
Dr Peter Peng-Cheng Ting, who qualified in medicine in 1994 at the Royal College of Surgeons in Dublin, is accused of professional misconduct concerning the death of a patient who developed a mole on his back.
His patient, William Cashell from Rush, was 36 when he noted a mole on his back in early 2007.
He attended Dr Ting in February 2007 where the mole was removed.
Dr Ting did not send it off for analysis and the inquiry heard there is no record of the mole having been removed in Dr Ting's medical notes.
Around April 2007, Mr Cashell developed a lump under his arm and was referred for a chest x-ray and ultrasound.
Cystic masses were found after the ultrasound and Mr Cashell was referred to Beaumont Hospital for an out-patient appointment on 17 August.
The cystic swelling increased in size and Mr Cashell was later admitted to the hospital on 4 September.
After tests at Beaumont, Mr Cashell was found not to have a lymphoma but a metastatic carcinoma.
He was treated at the hospital for cancer and died in late May 2008.
Mr Cashell's partner of ten years, Lorraine Coady, told the inquiry he had been a healthy man but she first noticed a mole on his back in December 2006.
She said she accompanied him to Dr Ting in February 2007.
The inquiry heard today that the allegations against Dr Ting include; that he failed to take adequate steps to treat Mr Cashell, failed to take an adequate patient history and failed to send a biopsy for analysis or refer the patient to a specialist.
Lawyers for Dr Ting told the inquiry that he accepted that he did not keep adequate records and did not refer the biopsy for checks.
He also accepted that he did not respond to certain correspondence from the Council as he was "in a state of denial" and hoped the matter would "go away".
Prof Colin Bradley, an expert witness for the inquiry, has said that any mole removed, should be sent for histalogical examination, irrespective of its appearance, as the naked eye can not determine if it is suspicious or not.
He also said a referral letter to Beaumont Hospital for Mr Cashell, written by Dr Ting, did not emphasise the urgency of the case.
The inquiry has adjourned for the evening and will begin again at 10.15am tomorrow.
