A woman claims mistakes by hospital staff have left her infertile.

Joanna Long, 34, visited Conquest Hospital seven times for tests before her ectopic pregnancy was detected.

She told nurses on her first visit she had suffered an ectopic pregnancy ten years before and had the same symptoms.

But the problem was only spotted three weeks later when her fallopian tube ruptured and she needed life saving surgery.

When Mrs Long awoke from the operation to remove her fallopian tube, she was told she was unable to have any more children.

Medical staff have since admitted a women in her condition should have been referred to a specialist earlier.

Mrs Long, of Northian Cottages, Staplecross, near Hastings, said: "When you go into hospital you put your trust in people who are paid to know what they are talking about.

"I told them straight away I thought I was having an ectopic pregnancy.

"I came out of there not only having lost my baby but also the chance of ever having another.

"On top of feeling unwell after the operation, I have had to come to terms with being infertile at 34."

The case will be watched closely by hundreds of women from the Eastbourne area who could have to travel to the Conquest if an ongoing review of hospital services recommends their local maternity ward for closure.

Mrs Long, an assistant at Westfield Playgroup, has three young children from a previous relationship and wanted to have a baby with new partner, support worker Simon Talbot, 39.

She was referred to the hospital by her GP on September 27 after showing positive on a pregnancy test.

Five blood samples taken at the hospital showed pregnant hormone levels but two scans failed to reveal a baby in her womb.

A third scan on October 17 revealed her fallopian tube had burst.

She said: "From that moment on it was panic stations and I had emergency surgery.

"I wanted to start a family with Simon.

"He is an excellent step dad and we wanted a fourth child to complete the circle.

"He has no children of his own and now never will.

"That chance was taken away from us."

Mrs Long will take legal action if she does not get an apology and the assurance this could never happen again to other patients.

She said: "If I sued the hospital there would be no pleasure spending the money which I got from losing my baby."

The Conquest Hospital has written to Mrs Long saying someone with her symptoms should have seen to a specialist after the second blood test.

She could have been given a methotrexate injection which would have dissolved the foetus and left with the chance of conceiving again.

A spokesman for East Sussex Hospitals NHS Trust, which run the Conquest Hospital, said: "We have responded to Mrs Long's complaint and understand she has further concerns which are currently being addressed."