Chicago Injury Lawyer Blog
Failure to diagnose cancer is a medical malpractice error that can lead to grave-if not fatal-consequences for a person afflicted with the disease. Many forms of cancer are easily treatable if diagnosed early enough. Failure to diagnose cancer or delay in diagnosing cancer can seriously affect a cancer patient’s prognosis for recovery, as well as the kind of treatment he or she must undergo in order to survive.
Attorney Joseph Klest is a Chicago medical malpractice attorney who has dealt with cancer-related malpractice cases in Will County, Cook County, DuPage County, Lake County, and elsewhere in Illinois. He is aware of the devastating impact that the failure to diagnose cancer can wreak on a patient’s health and chances for survival. He would like to offer you a free consultation to discuss your case.
Consequences of Failure to Diagnose Cancer The sooner that cancer cells are identified and diagnosed in a patient, the sooner a treatment can be prescribed. Depending on the type of cancer a patient is afflicted with, he or she may even be able to forego chemotherapy, radiation, or invasive surgery.
Failure to diagnose cancer during the early stages can cause the cancer to spread to other parts of the body and reach a stage of seriousness where it cannot be controlled and the patient could die. Procedures that could have been avoided, such as radiation, chemotherapy, reconstructive surgery, or surgery to remove a breast, lung, kidney, or testicle, may become necessary. What could have been an easier procedure or method of treatment can end up becoming a prolonged, complicated, and painful process where the patient ends up suffering greatly- even dying.
Some cancers that are easily detected or treated if diagnosed early:
* Breast cancer * Cervical cancer * Cancer of the esophagus * Colon cancer * Prostate cancer * Skin cancer
Causes of failure to diagnose cancer or delayed diagnosis of cancer:
* Test screening errors * Lab errors * Misinterpreting pap smear results, mammogram tests, HPV tests, or biopsy results * Failure to conduct the proper detection test * Prescribing a treatment plan that is too aggressive or not aggressive enough * Negligence or carelessness * Not paying proper attention * Surgical error
At Joseph Klest, Attorney at Law, we represent many cancer patients who have suffered more than they should have because a doctor or oncologist failed to diagnose cancer even when there was an opportunity to do so.
Attorney Klest will work with our team of top cancer specialists to review your medical records and determine when and how the failure to diagnose your illness took place. You may be eligible for financial recovery for medical costs, home care expenses, hospice-related expenses, pain and suffering, and lost wages. Visit our medical malpractice page for more information.
Or, if you believe your loved one died because a doctor or oncologist in the Chicago area failed to diagnose cancer, you may be entitled to compensation for your family member’s wrongful death.
To request your free consultation with Joseph Klest, Attorney at Law, contact us online or call (847) 969-9510, (312) 527-2779, or (630) 529-7848. We have law offices in Chicago and Schaumburg, Illinois, and Attorney Klest will travel anywhere in Illinois to meet with his medical malpractice clients.