Judge rules federal prison must treat inmate’s breast cancer

WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. – A judge has ordered the federal prison system to make sure a North Carolina woman gets timely treatment for breast cancer while she is incarcerated in Alabama.

The Winston-Salem Journal reports that a judge admonished federal officials for what she called a ‘longstanding failure’ to make sure 47-year-old Angela Beck gets the cancer treatments she needs.

The Monday order would require prison officials to co-ordinate with medical providers to get tests and treatment for Beck, who is serving almost 14 years for drug and firearms offences.

Beck filed a federal lawsuit, saying her prison in Alabama waited over eight months to get a biopsy after she found a lump in her breast in August 2017, then another two months to schedule surgery.

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This story has been corrected to show that the story is from The Winston-Salem Journal.