AN anxious mother wants to know why her son had his tonsils removed at Blackburn Royal Infirmary -- days before hospital chiefs cancelled all similar operations.

And the NHS Trust today said it did not act when the warning was first sounded by the Department of Health.

Karen Hamilton, of Tockholes Road, Darwen, said if she had known they were about to stop all tonsil and adenoid operations amid fears of contracting CJD, she would not have allowed the operation on four-year-old Dale.

Blackburn, Hyndburn and Ribble Valley NHS Trust suspended operations after advice from the Department of Health . While there is no evidence of any patient being infected with the disease, the DoH said precautions could be taken to reduce the "theoretical risk" of transmission to patients.

But although the DoH issued the warning in early January, Trust bosses only cancelled operations last Friday.

Dale could have been one of 140 people operated on in the 28 days from receiving advice to cancelling operations, according to trust figures of around 35 operations a week. Mrs Hamilton said: "It's disgusting. I believe the risk is very small but we were not given the choice."

Anne Asher, trust acute service manager, said they did not act on the advice because they were not told to but stressed the risk was "absolutely minimal."