Failure to Diagnose Cancer

How Common Is Failure to Diagnose Cancer?

Learning that you have cancer is one of the most difficult things that a person can hear at a doctor’s office. It may be even more devastating to learn that your cancer has spread (metastasized) or gotten to a more advanced stage because your doctor missed the initial diagnosis.

The most important factor in fighting cancer is early detection. However, since the symptoms for various types of cancer often mimic other conditions, physicians sometimes overlook key indicators and fail to order appropriate tests. Physicians have PSA tests, mammograms, and biopsies at their disposal to detect the presence of cancer.

In other instances, doctors may misread the results of an imaging test or biopsy. If the appropriate diagnosis is not made in time, the delay can lessen the effectiveness of any treatment or can lead to a patient’s untimely wrongful death.

According to studies, 46% of primary care diagnostic errors were related to missed cancer diagnoses. Most of these missed diagnoses were related to errors in clinical judgment, including failure or delay in ordering a diagnostic test or obtaining a consult or referral. The most common types of missed cancer diagnoses include lung, colorectal, prostate, and breast cancer.

The White Plains, New York Medical Malpractice Attorneys at Law Offices of Thomas L. Gallivan, PLLC represent victims of medical malpractice who have suffered injuries or died as a result of a physician’s failure to diagnose cancer.

We handle cases involving the failure to diagnose all kinds of cancer, including the following:

• breast cancer
• colon cancer
• ovarian cancer
• cervical cancer
• uterine cancer
• testicular cancer
• skin cancer
• prostate cancer
• thyroid cancer
• leukemia
• lymphoma
• stomach cancer
• bladder cancer
• kidney cancer
• colon cancer

If you have gotten a cancer diagnosis that you believe was missed or delayed, you may be able to file a lawsuit against your doctor. Our experienced New York medical malpractice attorneys can help you get maximum compensation for your losses.

What Is Failure to Diagnose? 

Failure to diagnose is exactly what it sounds like: a medical professional (usually a physician) failed to diagnose a medical condition. This could happen for a number of reasons, such as not listening to or taking a patient’s complaints seriously, not ordering the right tests, reading diagnostic tests incorrectly, or not seeking a consultation with an expert.

Not every delayed diagnosis is a form of medical malpractice. In some cases, patients don’t seek medical care because of anxiety, lack of insurance coverage, or simply because they don’t like doctors. In other cases, doctors may not be able to make a particularly tricky cancer diagnosis, perhaps because the patient did not have symptoms when they examined them.

The key in any medical malpractice case is that the medical professional failed to adhere to the standard of care for the profession. For example, if a reasonably competent primary care physician would order tests or refer a patient to a specialist if they presented with bloody stools and sudden weight loss, it would be medical malpractice to fail to do so. If the patient is ultimately diagnosed with colon cancer, then they may have a claim for failure to diagnose.

To win a failure to diagnose claim, you will have to introduce evidence that your doctor failed to diagnose your cancer when another reasonably competent physician would have diagnosed it in similar circumstances. Your New York medical malpractice lawyer will consult with medical experts to determine if there was medical negligence. They will then submit a Certificate of Merit along with a lawsuit affirming that they conferred with another physician before filing the claim.

Medical malpractice claims are handled through the provider’s insurance company. They often aggressively defend against these types of claims. Our law firm is adept at taking on the big insurance companies and getting great results for our clients. We won’t back down until you get the money that you deserve for your losses.

You may be able to pursue a medical malpractice claim if your physician:

• Failed to make the correct diagnosis in a timely manner;
• Failed to order appropriate diagnostic tests;
• Failed to properly interpret test results;
• Failed to take an adequate medical or family history;
• Failed to order treatment in a timely manner;
• Prescribed improper treatment;
• Misdiagnosed cancer; and/or
• Failed to read test results properly.

If you or a loved one has been injured due to medical malpractice involving the failure to diagnose cancer, contact The Law Offices of Thomas L. Gallivan, PLLC now for a free consultation. For a sampling of our firm’s recent results obtained for medical malpractice victims, please click here.

Compensation for Failure to Diagnose Cancer

A missed cancer diagnosis isn’t just an inconvenience. It has the potential to be fatal. At a minimum, a delayed cancer diagnosis will often mean more extensive, invasive treatment. It could also mean that the cancer has grown more aggressive and spread to other parts of your body.

If your doctor failed to diagnose you with cancer, you may be entitled to compensation for your losses. This will typically include two types of damages:

• Economic damages pay for your direct financial losses, such as medical bills, future medical treatment, lost wages, and reduced earning capacity.
• Non-economic damages pay for your indirect losses, including pain and suffering, loss of enjoyment of life, scarring, disfigurement, and emotional trauma.

In more unusual cases, you may also be entitled to punitive damages. These damages are only awarded in claims involving intentional or reckless conduct. It may be possible that your doctor acted intentionally or recklessly in missing your cancer diagnosis, such as if he or she evaluated you while under the influence of drugs and/or alcohol. Our White Plains medical malpractice attorneys can help you understand your rights when it comes to punitive damages and other compensation in a failure to diagnose case.

Studies show that people who are represented by counsel recover significantly more money compared to people who represent themselves. Insurance companies will rarely offer you a fair settlement without the potential for a lawsuit. Instead, they will try to make the case go away for as little money as possible.

Your lawyer is ethically and legally obligated to represent your best interests. Our New York failure to diagnose attorneys will fight for your right to full compensation. We won’t accept anything less than what you deserve for your injuries.

Protect Your Rights

Medical malpractice can take many forms, including failure to diagnose serious conditions such as cancer. A missed cancer diagnosis can cause serious harm. Our law firm will work to get you the money that you deserve for your losses.

Based in White Plains, The Law Offices of Thomas L. Gallivan represents accident and injury victims throughout New York. We handle all cases on a contingency fee basis, which means that we never charge a fee unless we recover money for you. To learn more, call us at 914-220-1086 or fill out our online contact form to schedule a free consultation with a New York medical malpractice attorney.