Learn Your Rights When a Delay in Cancer Diagnosis Due to Medical Malpractice Harms You or a Loved One
No one ever wants to hear the words “you have cancer.” A cancer diagnosis at any point in a person’s life is devastating, but what can be even more devastating is when there is a delay in diagnosis of cancer, or a misdiagnosis, leading to a delay in receiving a cancer diagnosis. Most people know that cancer is a severe and life-threatening illness that requires timely treatment for survival. Unfortunately, people face significant delays in diagnosis all too often, leading to the need for more invasive and toxic treatment and decreased chance of survival or even death. A delay in cancer diagnosis should never occur. If a delay in diagnosis occurs, it is often considered medical malpractice.
You do not need to be a doctor to know that a delay in cancer diagnosis can be severe and fatal. A delay in cancer diagnosis allows it to fester and grow stronger, making it more difficult to remove. Even if a doctor can remove it, a delay in cancer diagnosis can subject a patient to more invasive and disabling treatment, including treatment resulting in permanent disability.
If you or a loved one may have been injured due to failure to diagnose and treat cancer timely, you may be entitled to compensation under the law. This includes whether your cancer was not timely treated, misdiagnosed, or if there was a delay in cancer diagnosis. Learn more about your rights from one of our cancer misdiagnosis medical malpractice lawyers available by locating one here at Medical Malpractice Universe.
What is Cancer?
According to the National Cancer Institute, cancer is a disease that occurs due to the uncontrolled cell growth of abnormal cells in the body. The abnormal cells rapidly divide, leading to an alteration of function in normal healthy cells as the abnormal cells crowd the healthy cells.
There is not one single cause of cancer, and often, the cause of an individual’s cancer is unknown. Known causes of cancer include genetic mutations, environmental toxins, smoking, an unhealthy diet, excess time spent in the sun, viruses, infections, and many other causes.
Why Do Delays in the Diagnosis of Cancer Occur?
Delays in the diagnosis of cancer sadly happen all too often. There are many reasons for cancer delays, with many entirely preventable. Common causes of cancer delays include the following:
- Failure to conduct appropriate testing
- Failure to complete a comprehensive assessment
- Dismissal of a patient’s complaints
- Failure to recommend and conduct appropriate cancer screening based on a person’s age and risk factors
- Misinterpretation of test results
- Failure to properly conduct testing
- Diagnosing a patient with something other than cancer (misdiagnosis)
- Insurance delays in approving needed testing
- Delay in referral to a specialist (i.e. hematologist or oncologist)
- Inexperienced physicians and other healthcare providers failing to recognize signs and symptoms of cancer
- Mixing up of patients
- Setting up follow up appointments to far into the future when an appointment is needed much sooner
- Many there causes of delays in the diagnosis of cancer.
What Cancers are Most Commonly Delayed in Diagnosis?
While all types of cancers have experienced diagnosis delays, certain types of cancer are more commonly delayed than others. There are many reasons for this, including the presentation of cancer, how rare the cancer is, and routine screening for the cancer. However, sometimes delays in a cancer diagnosis happen due to healthcare provider error, which is entirely unacceptable. Cancers that more commonly experience a delay in diagnosis include the following:
- Brain cancers
- Rectal and colon cancers
- Skin cancer
- Stomach cancer
- Throat cancer
- Esophageal cancer
- Lung cancer
- Ovarian
- Non-hodgkin’s lymphoma
- Prostate cancer
What are the Consequences in a Delay in Cancer Diagnosis
A delay in cancer diagnosis can have several unfortunate consequences. Some of these consequences are permanent or even fatal. Examples of consequences of a delay in diagnosis include the following:
- Progression of cancer, sometimes making the cancer incurable
- Need for systemic therapy (i.e. chemotherapy) when the cancer originally was/could have been localized
- Need for radical surgery (i.e. hysterectomy, colectomy, need for colostomy, etc.)
- Permanent brain damage or damage of other internal organs
- Need for amputation
- Nede for radiation therapy
- Worsening symptoms from a person’s cancer
- Death
These are just some of the many consequences that an individual may experience due to a delay in cancer diagnosis. People with cancer should never have to deal with these consequences due to a medical provider not diagnosing their cancer promptly.
What Should I do if My Loved One or I Experienced a Delay in Cancer Diagnosis?
If you or your loved one experienced a delay in cancer diagnosis, seeking legal counsel may not be the first thing on your mind. You or your loved one is now likely undergoing aggressive and invasive treatment, and your focus is getting through each day. However, as mentioned above, a delay in cancer diagnosis can have many consequences.
Many of these consequences are expensive or life-changing. While a delay in diagnosis is not always the fault of a healthcare provider (i.e., if you delayed seeking help and were experiencing cancer symptoms) if you appropriately sought help but it took an extended period for diagnosis, this can be the fault of the healthcare provider. You should never have to pay physically or monetarily for the outcomes of a delay in cancer diagnosis, which is why it is wise to speak with a delay in cancer diagnosis lawyer who can help you obtain the compensation you deserve for any injuries to a delay in diagnosis.
If You or a Loved One Were Injured by a Delay in Cancer Diagnosis, Speak With Our Lawyers Today
Cancer is a very serious condition that cannot be allowed to fester—we all know this. That is why the delay in treating cancer due to a misdiagnosis could be severe and life-threatening medical malpractice. If you or a loved one suffered personal injuries, or if a loved one was wrongfully killed due to a cancer misdiagnosis, learn how our experienced delay of cancer misdiagnosis lawyers can help by locating and calling one here from Medical Malpractice Universe.