Cancer Misdiagnosis Compensation Claims

Cancer misdiagnosis claims may sometimes be complex spending on the severity of the case. This article discusses what you need to know about making a claim.

Cancer Misdiagnosis Claims & Solicitors

“Cancer misdiagnosis claims refer to when an individual sues a doctor or healthcare provider for negligence resulting in a misdiagnosed cancer condition.”

Cancer sufferers commonly go through a very difficult and traumatic time physically, psychologically, and financially. The situation becomes even more agonising when it is discovered that the doctor failed to diagnose the condition earlier when it would have been easier to manage.

Although cancer is one of the leading causes of death worldwide, early detection and treatment of cancer can significantly increase a patient’s chances of survival. If cancer is not diagnosed and treated promptly, the chances of a full recovery decrease substantially. That is why the issue of cancer misdiagnosis is very serious.

What is Cancer Misdiagnosis?

Cancer misdiagnosis is an umbrella term for a variety of situations. It can occur when a medical professional fails to accurately diagnose cancer (misdiagnosis), resulting in delayed or ineffective treatment, unnecessary medical procedures, or emotional distress. This can also happen when a patient is wrongly diagnosed with cancer, despite being cancer-free.

Cancer misdiagnosis also describes a situation where a patient is given a false “all-clear” despite the presence of cancerous cells. In addition, it is a huge failure on the part of medical professionals not to refer patients to a specialist for further examination or confirmatory tests when there is a suspected case of cancer.

Causes of Cancer Misdiagnosis

According to a report by All.Can cancer initiative, as much as 4/10 people with cancer in the UK are misdiagnosed at least once before their disease is identified. Cancer can be misdiagnosed for various reasons, some of which can include:

Errors from the medical professionals

• An incorrect reading of your test or laboratory results leading to wrong treatment. A false “all-clear”, may result in no treatment at all. This drastically affects the person’s chances of survival and life expectancy. For example, the incorrect interpretation of a chest X-ray or CT scan will mean failure to identify signs of lung cancer.
• Another human error is the failure of medical professionals to refer a patient for further tests to either confirm or rule out the presence of cancer. Medical professionals are to use all the medical tools available to ensure that the correct diagnosis is made.
• Human mistakes can also arise when healthcare professionals are given targets or time pressured. Although systems are put in place to enhance the standard of care and service, healthcare professionals can still fail to give adequate attention as required to their patients, resulting in misdiagnosis.

Since cancer may have symptoms similar to other medical conditions at the onset, medical professionals must be vigilant and perform all necessary tests, so that the right treatment and diagnosis can be made.

For instance, breast cancer which affects about one in seven women in the UK may be incorrectly diagnosed as a benign cyst. Also, pancreatic cancer may be misdiagnosed as pancreatitis also patients with lung cancer may be incorrectly diagnosed with asthma, pneumonia, bronchitis, or even tuberculosis.

Fragmentation and Communication Breakdown in Healthcare Systems

Where the healthcare system is fragmented, errors are made leading to misdiagnosis or delay in commencing treatment. When medical professionals fail to share information with each other in the best interest of the patient, there could be serious consequences.

Your local GP may fail or take too long to refer you to your local NHS hospital for further medical examination and specialist diagnostic services. When it is finally done, and the NHS hospital fails to request your attendance for the tests, this will lead to delayed treatment which can greatly affect the victim’s quality of life and survival chances.

1. High Demand

A lot is demanded from healthcare officers. Targets imposed on medical professionals by the government can lead to pressure on the medical professionals which will mean that patients may not get the most attentive medical care from the medical professional.

Although targets are put in place to improve service delivery, mistakes relating to cancer misdiagnosis can still occur.

If a medical professional missed, or misdiagnosed your cancer, which has led to a worsened condition, you may reach out to us to assess your potential claim. If successful, we will put you through to one of our partnered medical negligence solicitors who would then assist you in filing your Cancer Misdiagnosis compensation claims.

You can reach out to us today by completing our online form or call us on 0800 644 4240.

Commonly Misdiagnosed Cancers

Some examples of misdiagnosed cancers in the UK include:

• Breast Cancer
• Lung Cancer
• Pancreatic Cancer
• Colorectal Cancer

It is important for medical professionals to take particular care when patients visit them and show symptoms that may relate to any cancer type. When a medical professional fails to properly investigate and give the right diagnosis, such breach of duty can be classified as medical negligence.

How Does Misdiagnosis of Certain Cancer Cases Occur?

• Cervical cancer – Delay or failure to recommend Pap smear tests or HPV tests or failure to carry out thorough examination with a magnifying colposcope to check or confirm abnormal sized cells.
• Ovarian cancer – Delays or failure to carry out CA125 blood test, abdominal or transvaginal ultrasound, X-ray, CT scan, needle biopsy or laparoscopy.
• Breast cancer – delay or failure to carry out mammogram or breast ultrasound, biopsy or needle aspiration.
• Prostate cancer – Delays or failure in recommending an MRI scan, transperineal biopsy, transrectal biopsy, CT scan or PET scan especially when you have abnormal prostate-specific antigen levels.
• Lung cancer – Delays or failure in recommending chest X-ray, CT scan, PET-CT scan, bronchoscopy and biopsy or endobronchial ultrasound for confirmation.
• Bowel cancer – Delays in in recommending a colonoscopy, CT scan or sigmoidoscopy (examination using a camera and light on a thin tube)
• Bone (Sarcoma) cancer – Delays in recommending a scan, biopsy or bone scan

Note that misdiagnosis also arises when there is failure in accurately interpreting the results of these tests.

How Common is Cancer Misdiagnosis?

Statistics on Cancer Misdiagnosis in the UK shows that cancer is listed as the second most common cause of death; with 167,142 people died of cancer between 2017 and 2019.

Lung cancer for instance killed about 1.71 million people globally in 2018 making it one of the deadliest forms of cancer. It is also sadly the third most common type of cancer.

According to Cancer Research UK, between 2016 and 2018, 53% of all new cancer cases in the UK comprised breast, prostate, lung, and bowel cancers. Between 2017 and 2019, the same cancers accounted for 45% of all cancer deaths in the UK. In England in 2015-16, 6 in 10 of all cancer cases diagnosed through an emergency route were at the latest stage.

Additionally, records show that in the UK 76% of primary bone cancer cases are initially misdiagnosed. Generally, and according to the NHS, between 10-20% of all cancer cases are misdiagnosed worldwide. The BBC also published an article in 2014 citing a study that found that 209 out of 415 men were initially told their prostate cancer was slow growing when in fact they had a more aggressive form of the disease.

Can I make a claim for cancer misdiagnosis or delayed diagnosis of my cancer and treatment?

It is never acceptable for a cancer condition to be misdiagnosed, regardless of the reason. Medical professionals have a duty of care to their patients and when they fail in such duty, the consequences can be traumatic.

You may be able to make a cancer negligence claim and take action to seek redress for you or your loved one. It is best to start early while you are still within the limitation period for making claims.

While it may not be possible to reverse a cancer misdiagnosis, awarded compensation can help to alleviate associated pain and suffering. Seeking compensation for misdiagnosis may also provide financial support and ensure that the victim can access the necessary medical help to improve their chances of recovery.

Types of Compensation Claims for Misdiagnosed Cancer

Here are some examples of claims for cancer misdiagnosis:

• Bone Cancer Misdiagnosis Claims
• Bowel Cancer Misdiagnosis Claims
• Brain Cancer Misdiagnosis Claims
• Breast Cancer Misdiagnosis Claims
• Liver Cancer Misdiagnosis Claims
• Lung Cancer Misdiagnosis Claims
• Lymphoma Misdiagnosis Claims
• Ovarian Cancer Misdiagnosis Claims
• Cervical Cancer Misdiagnosis Claims

For any of the above cancer misdiagnosis claims you may have, you can reach out to us to see if we can connect you to one of our partnered specialist cancer misdiagnosis solicitors. You can start by completing our free online form.

Psychological Impact of Cancer Misdiagnosis on the individual

The impact of cancer misdiagnosis to the patient and the patient’s family can be devastating in more ways than one. You may have been given a false “all clear” by the doctor only to learn that this was incorrect. On the other hand, you may have been incorrectly diagnosed with cancer which can hugely affect you mentally and psychologically.

An extensive research report published by the Annals of Family Medicine recently found that cancer misdiagnosis can result in long-term psychosocial harm for the patient. It was gathered that even after three years of a false-positive finding during mammography tests, women with false positives consistently reported greater negative psychosocial consequences, compared with women with a correct diagnosis of breast cancer.

Yes, you may have good news that you are cancer free, but the devastating impact of the misdiagnosis will not be forgotten in a hurry. You may very well lose trust in your healthcare provider for such a costly mistake.

What to Do If You Suspect a Cancer Misdiagnosis?

If you think you may have grounds to make cancer misdiagnosis claims, seek help early. You can reach out to us today 08006444240, so that you can start your claim as soon as possible.

We will complete a free claim assessment to see if we can connect you to one of our partnered law firms who will provide you with a dedicated solicitor that would ensure the best possible legal representation. These dedicated medical negligence lawyers are well experienced, friendly and understanding. They will guide you through the entire cancer misdiagnosis negligence compensation claims process and support you adequately during this difficult time.

Claim for compensation in misdiagnosed cancer cases should be handled expertly and our partnered cancer misdiagnosis lawyers leave no stone unturned, until it is established that your healthcare provider acted negligently.

When it comes to claiming compensation, the four parts of negligence which applies to all medical negligence claims must be proven. These are;

• Duty (your medical professional owed you a duty to care for you)
• Deviation (the medical professional failed in that duty of care)
• Direct causation (such failure in duty directly caused you undue pain and suffering as you condition has worsened)
• Damages (you have been severely impacted negatively -physically, emotionally, mentally, financially, and otherwise)

Relevant information and documents required as evidence to back up your claims will be provided when you decide to work with our partnered Medical Negligence Claims Solicitors. You would also be advised accordingly, should the need for an independent medical expert arise.

Some of the documents required for making claims include;

• Detailed statements; appointment dates and the medical professionals who attended to you
• Medical test results and scans
• Witness statements
• Evidence of financial losses incurred as a result of the negligent treatment. This will include past, current and estimated future financial losses
• Pictures
• Medical Report from an independent medical expert

The Claims Procedure

Our partnered law firm have Medical Negligence Solicitors who are experts in Cancer Misdiagnosis Compensation Claims. They will give you an in-depth explanation into what the claims process entails and seek compensation as soon as possible.

If your claim assessment is successful, we will connect you with them if you reach out to us today by completing our quick online enquiry form or call us on 0800 644 4240.

A summary of a successful cancer misdiagnosis compensation claims process is listed below;

• Speak to your Lawyer
• Fund Your Claim
• Gather your Evidence
• Submit your letter of claim
• Negotiations
• Payment of Settlement

What Amount Will I Receive for My Cancer Misdiagnosis Compensation Claim?

Each type of cancer misdiagnosis claim can result in a different compensation amount. The specific details of each misdiagnosed case also affects the potential compensation a victim may be awarded. Medical negligence compensation amounts are not set in stone, however, our partnered cancer misdiagnosis claims lawyers can give you an estimate of what you may receive as settlement for your claims using our negligence claims calculator.

What Damages Can I Claim In A Cancer Misdiagnosis Lawsuit?

There are basically two types of damages you are entitled to. These are;

• General Damages refers to compensation for factors regarding the type of cancer misdiagnosis, severity of the damage caused by the misdiagnosis and the impact it has had on you.
• Special Damages on the other hand covers for other financial losses incurred including “out-of-pocket” expenses as a result of the incident. Special damages also take care of medical costs for appointments and treatment, loss of earnings, future prognosis. Where necessary, costs of hiring caregivers as well as cost for assistive devices for rehabilitation is covered.

Do I have to handle the compensation claim myself?

While opting to file a complaint directly is an option, you can also work with legal professionals who can assist you in making claims.

We are a claims management company and receive payments from our partnered law firms for our service. If you qualify for a free claim assessment and that assessment is successful, you will be connected to an expert law firm to assist with your potential claim. Our service is completely free.

Cancer misdiagnosis claims are a very serious issue, you can seek legal help. You do not have to bear the financial burden or emotional stress of medical professionals failure in their duty to you.

It is for this purpose that our lines are open. Feel free to reach out today 0800 644 4240 and we will be happy to assist.

Frequently Asked Questions about Cancer Misdiagnosis Claims

Can I sue my doctor for Cancer misdiagnosis in the UK??

Yes, you surely can. You are legally entitled to sue for cancer misdiagnosis against a doctor or the NHS for negligent treatment leading to misdiagnosis of your condition.

What Can Be Mistaken For Cancer?

The truth is that not all bumps or lumps are tumours. There are other conditions which can lead to soft tissue masses that are not tumours.

An infection or abscess can be mistaken for a cancerous tumour. Cysts which may result from inflamed joints or tendons due to injury as well as other inflammatory conditions such as rheumatoid arthritis may also be mistaken for cancer.

Other bone conditions such as Paget’s disease, fibrous dysplasia, osteopetrosis and even idiopathic myositis ossificans may be wrongly diagnosed as a high-grade osteosarcoma.

Can I Get Compensation For Misdiagnosis?

Yes you could claim for compensation. However, the amount you receive is based on the general and special damages. For the general damages, you can claim for unnecessary pain, trauma and disability sustained as a result of misdiagnosis. On the other hand, the special damages cover for other financial expenses incurred due to the negligent treatment.

What Can Cause A False Positive For Cancer?

The current cancer screening methods heavily rely on the medical professionals making accurate interpretation and decisions based on the reports shown. When there is incorrect interpretation of blood tests, biopsies, pap smear tests, x-rays and CT-scans, a false positive for cancer can occur.