Doctors misdiagnosed a 22-year-old's leukaemia as tonsillitis for two months during the Covid-19 lockdown because they were reluctant to physically examine his throat, he has claimed. Retail worker Ben Peters, from Swindon, said he was left unable to eat and barely able to breathe when his tonsils swelled to the size of golf balls during lockdown last year. He first noticed his symptoms in October but was unable to get an appointment until November, during which he said doctors were still reluctant to carry out a physical examination of his throat. Mr Peters was eventually diagnosed with acute lymphocytic leukaemia on December 29 after calling 111 on Boxing Day and being rushed to Great Western Hospital with severe breathing issues.