Mr Dixon has been suspended from performing certain procedures by the GMC
More than 50 patients who were given a controversial type of bowel surgery should not have been operated on, a hospital trust has admitted.
Dozens of women say they were left in severe pain after pelvic floor surgery using artificial mesh at Southmead Hospital in Bristol.
Colorectal surgeon Tony Dixon was suspended in 2017 after concerns were first raised and an inquiry examined 143 cases.
Dr Dixon, who also worked at the private Spire Hospital in Bristol, pioneered the use of artificial mesh to lift prolapsed bowels - a technique known as laparoscopic ventral mesh rectopexy (LVMR) - often caused by childbirth.
But he is currently suspended by the General Medical Council from performing certain forms of corrective surgery, and the NHS has referred him to the GMC over mesh procedures.
One of his patients hanged herself after suffering inescapable post-operative pain, after he operated on her and removed her ovaries without her consent.
North Bristol NHS Trust has now told 57 patients they should have been offered alternative treatment first, prior to surgery, following an investigation into their care.
It found that although the operations on 57 people were carried out 'satisfactorily' they 'should have been offered alternative treatments before proceeding to surgery.'
Another 73 patients considered by the review have been told the surgery they received was appropriate.
A further 13 patients have been told that investigations into their cases remain ongoing and will be completed as soon as possible.
One of Tony Dixon's patients, Lucinda Methuen-Campbell, killed herself after suffering terirble post-operative pain after she went in for surgery on a bowel but he removed her ovaries with permission 'because they were in the way', an inquest heard
The Trust admitted that it was 'unacceptable' that patients who did not require surgery were operated on and have apologised.
After concerns were raised about pelvic floor surgery, the trust began a review of the cases of women and men who underwent the procedure between 2007 and 2017.
Now, 18 months on, the Trust has written to Mr Dixon's patients at Southmead Hospital in Bristol, apologising that the women were given this procedure at all.
The letter begins: 'I am very sorry to tell you that in the opinion of the clinical advisory group, you should have been offered alternative treaments before proceeding to surgery.'
One patient whose life has been damaged by the mesh surgery is Paula Goss, 49, from South Gloucestershire - who says she is 'disgusted' and 'fuming' over the outcome.
Speaking to the BBC, Paula, said that she was told the surgery 'would change her life and would make everything better'.
But she told the BBC: 'I'm disabled in many ways because of it. After five years, I'm still having all the issues. It's not good enough.
'I'm disgusted, I'm fuming. I feel very angry, very let down, not just physically but emotionally.
'It's not just the physical pain that you have, it's your mental pain, because you're living with it daily.
'You're having to try and get through each day thinking that you're okay. It's a struggle,' she added.
One of Mr Dixon's patients, Paula Goss, said she felt let down emotionally and physically
The vast majority of the operations were carried out by Mr Dixon, but some were performed by a further three surgeons.
Ms Goss is just one of more than 90 patients being represented by Medical negligence specialists from Thompsons Solicitors - looking into the surgery at Southmead Hospital and the Spire.
Madeleine Pinschof, senior solicitor at the firm and its national coordinator for mesh, added: ‘This is another example of the dangerous complications associated with surgical mesh procedures.
‘This recall is about one or more surgeons at one Trust but it isn’t an isolated issue and needs to be seen as part of a pattern repeated across the UK.’
Dr Chris Burton, medical director of the North Bristol NHS Trust, said: 'I want to apologise to all patients who have received surgery unnecessarily - it is unacceptable and we are taking it extremely seriously.
'We took immediate action to ensure this couldn't happen again and have been supporting patients where they need it.
'We will keep investigating to ensure we have identified those patients affected by these issues, and to find out what happened to learn lessons for future care.'
Mr Dixon, who also performed operations at Spire Hospital in Bristol, said he was 'unable to comment on specific allegations... due to patient confidentiality and while relevant investigations are on-going'.
'There is a need for caution in comparing the use of mesh in different procedures with very different risks and outcomes,' he added.
Southmead Hospital in Bristol where the surgeries by Mr Dixon and three other surgeons took place
Dr Chris Burton, medical director of the North Bristol NHS Trust, apologised saying 'it is unacceptable and we are taking it extremely seriously'
Spire Healthcare said it was carrying out a similar review which it hoped would be complete in May.
Mesh implants are medical devices used by surgeons to treat pelvic organ prolapse and incontinence in women, conditions that can commonly occur after childbirth.
Law firm Irwin Mitchell represents 49 people who underwent surgery at Southmead and Spire hospitals and called on the trust to 'openly publish its findings'.
Solicitor Sallie Booth said: 'Many patients, including our clients, have had a number of concerns about whether procedures they underwent were appropriate.
'Today's announcement by North Bristol NHS Trust is extremely concerning and understandably has caused a great deal of distress to our clients.
'The trust should now openly publish its findings to the patients concerned - rather than force them to get to the truth only through a stressful litigation process.
'It is welcome that the trust has now made public that 57 needlessly underwent surgery. It is vital that reasons why this was allowed to happen are established.'
Irwin Mitchell has already agreed terms with North Bristol NHS Trust for a scheme to consider compensation.
Ms Booth added: 'From speaking to clients, and through our initial investigations, the use of mesh in this type of surgery potentially has long term adverse consequences and so it is imperative that issues are fully investigated and a clear process established so patient safety is at the forefront at all times.
'It is also vital that those who think that they might have been affected by this issue contact us promptly so that their concerns can be fully investigated before the cases become time barred.'
Pioneering surgeon Tony Dixon, pictured, performed surgery on patients who should have been given other options first
Mr Dixon built up an international reputation for using mesh rectopexy to fix bowel problems, often caused by childbirth, but is currently suspended from performing this surgery at two hospitals in Bristol.
The General Medical Council (GMC) has stopped him from performing another form of corrective surgery, known as a Starr procedure (stapled transanal resection of the rectum), until November 2019.
The NHS has now also referred him to the GMC over mesh procedures.
A GMC spokeswoman said: 'We are aware of the outcome of North Bristol NHS Trust's investigation and the concerns that patients will be experiencing.
'While our own investigation is ongoing, Dr Dixon has had interim conditions placed on his practice by an interim orders tribunal at the Medical Practitioners Tribunal Service.'
Many clients have advised Irwin Mitchell that they have suffered complications following surgery, while others say that the procedure actually carried out were not what they were expecting, or was undertaken without their knowledge or consent.
The Spire private hospital, where Mr Dixon worked alongside his duties at North Bristol NHS Trust, has also said it is carrying out a review
One of Mr Dixon's patients killed herself after he removed her ovaries without her knowing during an operation, an inquest heard.
Lucinda Methuen-Campbell, from the village of Three Crosses, near Swansea, went in for surgery on a bowel disorder - but came out without her ovaries.
An inquest heard Mr Dixon told her later that her ovaries were taken out 'because they were in the way.'
Mrs Methuen-Campbell chose surgery at a private hospital performed by pioneering surgeon Tony Dixon in September 2016 after suffering years of pain.
She had a vaginal mesh inserted to help with the bowel disorder but it left her in agony.
The 58-year-old was later found hanged in her attic telling her ex-partner: 'There didn't seem to be a way out of the pain.'
Mrs Methuen-Campbell's ex-partner Philip Chatfield, a sculptor, said: 'The pain continued to get worse and nobody seemed able to solve the problem.
'Mr Dixon performed the operation in 2016 with the mesh but it was unsuccessful and caused her to be in agony. She had a follow-up operation which made things even worse.'
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News Photo More than 50 patients should not have gone under suspended surgeon's knife, NHS admits
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