Patrick Hagopian outside UCH on Wednesday

NOBODY told NHS supporter Patrick Hagopian that striking junior doctors were forming a picket line on Wednesday at St Thomas’ and not University College Hospital.

So he was there on his own glad that a Westminster Extra camera at least captured his presence at the doors for posterity.

He told Harrington he had wanted to show doctors his support after receiving “magnificent” care following the appearance of a tumour in his abdomen and added: “They are operating in a context where there are delays, but that’s because of underfunding… I wanted to show that this member of the public, at least, supports the doctors.”

He was diagnosed with a desmoid-type fibromatosis tumour in his abdomen earlier this year.

Patrick has had a rough time, explaining: “My girlfriend said ‘Why is your love handle on one side hard and not on the other?’ I went to my GP, and immediately that evening, I had a blood test, and since then it’s been ultrasound, MRI and biopsy until I finally got my diagnosis. It’s not malignant, but it was a very anxious time while I was waiting for the diagnosis.”

He added: “When it comes to the sharp end of urgent care, through their unstinting efforts [doctors] are maintaining a very high-class service. But the underfunding leads to things like crumbling hospital wards.

“And where are these 40 new hospitals that were supposed to be built?”

Junior doctors are holding a six-day walkout after a meagre pay offer.