ST. JOHN’S, N.L. — The government of Newfoundland and Labrador says that 108 patients whose breast cancer tests were misread have died.It’s the first time the province has disclosed how many people who were given an inaccurate result on their breast cancer test have died. Another 275 patients who are still living were given a flawed result on their breast cancer test.

But provincial health minister Ross Wiseman says that a changed test result doesn’t necessarily mean that patients missed out on appropriate cancer treatment.

“It’s essential to remember that a changed (hormone receptor) test result does not necessarily mean that appropriate cancer treatment was delayed, as physicians tell us that this test is one factor among many that help determine course of treatment,” Wiseman said in a statement issued Tuesday.

Wiseman also said the database used to compile the death toll doesn’t specify the cause of death.

The revelation comes on the eve of the start of a public inquiry on Wednesday that will probe how more than 300 patients over an eight-year span were given erroneous results on their breast cancer tests.

Breast cancer patients affected by the error-prone tests and relatives of patients who have died are scheduled to be the first to testify.

The inquiry, established last summer, will try to determine why there were so many inaccurate test results, why the errors weren’t discovered until 2005 and whether the Eastern Health authority responded to patients and the public in an appropriate and timely manner.

Justice Margaret Cameron, who will preside over the inquiry, won’t make any conclusions about civil or criminal responsibility.

Part of the inquiry will focus on the efficacy of Eastern Health’s laboratory work on hormone receptor testing.

Hormone receptor testing can help determine the course of treatment for a breast cancer patient because, if patients are found to be estrogen-and/or progesterone-positive, they may respond to hormone therapy such as Tamoxifen.

If not, they may be given other treatment, such as chemotherapy or radiation.

The provincial government has requested the inquiry deliver a final report by July 30.

Veteran actress Dame Maggie Smith is reported to be battling breast cancer.A spokesman for the star, 73, refused to comment on the report.

But a friend told The Daily Telegraph’s Mandrake column: “She is dealing with it in her typically brave and understated way. She has had a tumour removed and subsequently completed a course of chemotherapy. This was precautionary and the prognosis looks good. The last thing she wants to do is to make a fuss about it.”

Dame Maggie is said to have filmed her role as Minerva McGonagall in the latest instalment of the Harry Potter films while undergoing radiation therapy.

Her next film is From Time To Time – Julian Fellowes’ adaptation of the Lucy M Boston’s series of books The Children Of Green Knowe.

Stage and screen actress Dame Maggie, who began her career at the Oxford Playhouse, has been performing for over 50 years.

She won a best actress Oscar for The Prime Of Miss Jean Brodie in 1970 and a supporting actress Oscar for California Suite in 1979.

Her son, Toby Stephens, from her first marriage, played a villain in James Bond film Die Another Day.

Dame Maggie married Beverley Cross in 1975 and the marriage ended with the playwright’s death in 1998.

A spokesman for the star said: “We never comment on our client’s private lives.”