CORONA VICTIM DEMANDS PROBE: Docs said James died of Covid.. I fear it was deaths scandal meds

Pamela says medics gave brother drug which can raise risk of ward infections

- VIVIENNE AITKEN

A FAMILY have demanded a probe as they claim an experimental Covid drug may have killed a much-loved dad.

James Cameron, 41, died in Ninewells Hospital, Dundee, with Covid listed as his cause of death.

But his sister Pamela, 42, was allowed access to his medical records which showed he was also suffering from a potentially fatal flesh-eating bug.

Pamela discovered that before he died, James had been given tocilizumab - an arthritis drug used to treat Covid in some patients but linked to a spate of deaths in the US.

Studies have connected the drug to an increased risk of catching deadly hospital infections.

Now the family are demanding to know why tocilizumab was used on James and other patients in the UK when studies show it can reduce the body's ability to fight infections.

The family have told how James appeared to suffer an allergic reaction before his death and said they believe the drug contributed to his death.

Pamela said: "When I saw him he looked like a red balloon about to pop. But when I raised concerns with staff was told it was nothing to worry about."

Pamela added: "He was unrecognisable. His lips were like bananas, his eyes were like tennis balls and his face was cut and had been eaten away by an MRSA infection." After James died, the family were told he had suffered a cardiac arrest.

But his death certificate listed Covid as a cause of death - which surprised Pamela as he appeared to be suffering from a serious infection.

He had previously had allergic reactions to antibiotics and the family say he would not have consented to being given tocilizumab. The drug is known to suppress the immune system and lower resistance to infection. Some people also develop allergies to it.