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On Monday, 23 February 2026, Four Corners went to air with the episode 'Scarred'. The show opened with the following allegations:
He was a top Melbourne surgeon who women trusted with their bodies and their futures.
But he removed organs and tissue from women in their twenties for what he told them was severe endometriosis, while failing to tell them that their pathology showed little or no signs of the disease. His procedures compromised their fertility and left some with chronic, debilitating pain.
The surgeon involved was Dr Simon Gordon. Dr Gordon has denied all allegations and maintains that he has at all times acted in the best interests of his patients. The matter is currently being investigated by Ahpra and no findings have currently been made against Dr Gordon.
The Four Corners episode has brought to the surface the issue of futile treatment in Australia i.e. treatment which:
- is of no benefit
- cannot achieve its stated purpose
- is not in the persons best interests.
In our next session of the First Thursday Club, BN's Rob Samut will look at futile treatment in Australian health care, the varying degrees to which it constitutes an ethical and legal breach of duty of care, the overall cost to the medical system, and what action the Regulator may take if a medical practitioner is found to have provided futile treatment.