Misdiagnosis, Delayed Diagnosis & Failure to Diagnose Cancer
Early detection, diagnosis, and treatment are key to fighting cancer. When medical providers fail to diagnose cancer or provide patients with delayed diagnoses or misdiagnoses, patients cannot receive the critical and often lifesaving care they need. This can lead to numerous complications, including the cancer metastasizing (spreading) and becoming more difficult or even impossible to treat.
If you or your loved one suffered health complications because a doctor or medical provider failed to diagnose cancer in a timely manner, reach out to Brown & Barron. You could be entitled to financial compensation, and our team can help. We are committed to protecting the rights of patients and their loved ones. Our Annapolis failure to diagnose cancer lawyers have recovered some of the largest settlements and verdicts inmedical malpractice law; they can help you work to hold the responsible party accountable for the pain and suffering you and your family have endured.
Schedule a complimentary consultation with our firm by calling 410-547-0202 or by filling out and submitting a secure contact form.
What Is Considered a “Failure to Diagnose” Cancer?
The term “failure to diagnose cancer” refers to any type of diagnostic error that results in a medical provider failing to provide a patient with a timely, accurate cancer diagnosis.
This includes:
- Missed Diagnosis: Missed diagnosis occurs when a patient seeks treatment for a medical condition or symptoms but does not receive any diagnosis
- Misdiagnosis: Misdiagnosis occurs when a patient is diagnosed with the wrong condition, e.g., being diagnosed with a respiratory disease instead of lung cancer
- Delayed Diagnosis: Delayed diagnosis occurs when a patient is not diagnosed with cancer for an unreasonable period of time, often due to delayed testing or test results
Sometimes, the opposite occurs. Rather than a patient with cancer failing to receive the correct diagnosis, a patient with another condition is incorrectly diagnosed with cancer. This can lead to a host of unnecessary medical treatments, which can prove harmful to the patient not to mention extremely costly.
If a medical provider fails to uphold the standard of care when diagnosing cancer, they have acted negligently. If the patient suffers complications or an injury as a result, they likely have grounds for legal action.
How Do Diagnostic Errors Happen?
Diagnostic errors, including failure to diagnose cancer, can occur due to a wide variety of reasons, including:
- General lack of knowledge regarding cancer and cancer symptoms
- Failure to order the appropriate diagnostic tests
- Failure to recognize cancer symptoms
- Mistaking cancer symptoms for symptoms of another condition
- Misreading or misanalysis of diagnostic test results
- Dismissing a patient’s symptoms
- Failure to consider a patient’s medical history
It is important to note that not all instances of failure to diagnose cancer constitute medical malpractice. Sometimes, a medical provider may follow the standard of care and order the appropriate tests, lab analyses, and physical examinations but still be unable to detect cancer. Medical providers may refer patients to specialists for further assessment. This does not necessarily mean that they have been negligent, even if the patient is later diagnosed with cancer.
Rather, to prove that medical malpractice occurred, you must prove that the doctor or medical professional who treated you failed to uphold the standard of care. This means that they either did something another qualified medical provider would not have done or failed to do something another qualified medical provider would have done in the same or similar circumstances.
Learn how our firm can assist you with your cancer misdiagnosis case; call us at 410-547-0202 or submit a free online case evaluation form today to get started.
The Effects of Cancer Misdiagnosis
When medical providers fail to diagnose cancer accurately and quickly, patients can suffer a wide range of physical, emotional, and financial problems.
Most significantly, the cancer can spread to other areas of the body, leading to more severe symptoms and the need for more aggressive treatment. In some cases, a missed cancer diagnosis can result in the cancer spreading to the point that it is no longer treatable.
Unfortunately, many of the most commonly misdiagnosed cancers—lung cancer, breast cancer, colon cancer, and pancreatic cancer, to name a few—are also the deadliest. This means that, for many patients who do not receive a timely diagnosis, the consequences are fatal.
CHOOSE A COMPASSIONATE LEGAL TEAM THAT WILL FIGHT FOR YOU
If you suffered serious physical and financial harm, or if your loved one passed away, and you believe that a medical provider’s failure to diagnose cancer may be to blame, reach out to the team at Brown & Barron right away. In Maryland, you only have three years to file a medical malpractice lawsuit (in most cases). However, the sooner we can review the facts of your case, the sooner we can begin putting together evidence and developing an innovative legal strategy on your behalf.
Our Annapolis failure to diagnose cancer attorneys are committed to securing justice for you and your family. We believe that negligent medical providers should be held accountable. We utilize our extensive experience, vast knowledge of the law, and robust resources to aggressively advocate for patients and their loved ones.