A breast surgeon at the forefront of breast reconstruction breakthroughs has been stopped from working after an audit of her work.

Briony Ackroyd is accused of misleading patients about the risks and advantages of combining an operation to remove a breast with another to reconstruct it.

However, a fiercely loyal support group, composed mainly of former patients, say that her unconventional "woman friendly" approach had led to a whispering campaign among some other hospital staff.

They say the pioneering surgeon will be exonerated if the General Medical Council chooses to investigate the case.

Miss Ackroyd, 52, was suspended from Walsgrave Hospital near Coventry almost a year ago following a medical negligence case involving a former patient.

A subsequent close examination of her work is said to have found 30 cases calling into question the accuracy of clinical information given to patients.

The surgeon also faces complaints that she was "unprofessional" by visiting patients at home, and failing to keep colleagues informed about her work.

Only a handful of surgeons in the UK currently carry out radical reconstructive breast surgery at the same time as mastectomy.

Removal trauma

The perceived advantages of doing so are to reduce the trauma breast cancer patients suffer when a breast is removed.

Having reconstruction at the same time allows women who would want reconstruction to get back to a normal life quicker.

However, critics say that results from the combined operation are simply not as good as those experienced by women who leave a gap between the two operations.

Walsgrave Hospital confirmed both that Miss Ackroyd had been suspended and that the audit of her cases was taking place.

Walsgrave Hospital chief executive David Loughton said all her cases would be reviewed.

"We are working as quickly as we can to resolve this matter both for the hospital and patients concerned and for Miss Ackroyd's sake," he said.

"It is fair to say we are looking at all cases Miss Ackroyd has undertaken while employed since 1995."

A spokesman for the GMC confirmed to the Press Association that it had been in discussions with Walsgrave about the surgeon's conduct.

The reconstruction operation involves taking muscle from either the stomach or the back of the patient and using it to form a new breast.

Miss Ackroyd also caused some ripples by offering patients a "tummy tuck" at the same time as she was removing the muscle.