Early detection and treatment of cancer provides the best opportunity for cure. Many types of cancer have wonderful survival statistics – if they are detected and treated in a timely fashion. This is especially true with today’s advances in medications and technology. All this rests on one important factor – a doctor has to appropriately suspect, test for, and diagnose the cancer.
Many types of cancer have signs and symptoms that should alert doctors to a potential problem. In the case of breast cancer a woman might feel a lump, or have a suspicious mass detected on mammogram. With colon cancer one might experience rectal bleeding or abnormal stools. With cervical cancer there might be abnormal bleeding or discomfort. In many cases people don’t know that their symptoms are serious, and they’re not supposed to. Doctors are supposed to know – that’s their job.
Failing to diagnose and treat cancer in the face of classic signs and symptoms is like stealing someone’s life. It is malpractice that can result in extensive and painful treatments, amputation, and death. It disrupts the life of the person who’s hurt, and the lives of their entire family.
An example of a case handled by us that involved a failure to diagnose cancer is the case of a young man who went to the doctor because he was experiencing rectal bleeding. His doctor was an HMO doctor, and the tests to screen for colon cancer would have come out of the doctor’s own pocket. So, he didn’t do the testing. He diagnosed hemorrhoids and sent the patient on his way. This went on for two years and multiple visits each year. The man continued to experience rectal bleeding, abnormal stools, abdominal pain, weight loss, and eventually anemia from losing so much blood, and the doctor kept saying hemorrhoids. He eventually went to a gastroenterologist who quickly diagnosed his colon cancer (and the fact that the man never had hemorrhoids – the first doctor didn’t even look!). Unfortunately by that time it was too late. The first doctor had allowed the cancer to grow and spread. A multi-million dollar recovery was made on behalf of his 5 children.
Investigating a case of failure to diagnose cancer involves gathering the records and establishing when a person exhibited signs and symptoms suggestive of disease and how the doctor responded. The records of ultimate diagnosis and treatment must also be examined. It is important to seek out an experienced medical malpractice attorney who has handled this type of case before. We have handled many cases involving the failure to diagnose cancer. Contact us if you suspect you have received negligent care.