Cancer Negligence Claims

Despite huge leaps in successful diagnosis and treatment over the last few decades, being told you or a loved one has cancer is terrifying. Even worse than hearing you have cancer is finding out that your prognosis is worse than it should be due to medical negligence or misdiagnosis. In a time when you may feel enormously let down by those you trust, it is essential to know that there is a team of experienced medical negligence solicitors who can fight in your corner for the compensation you deserve.

What is Cancer Negligence?

Cancer negligence can take several forms including cancer misdiagnosis and delayed cancer diagnosis. Both instances of clinical neglect could lead to a patient requiring a more aggressive type of treatment than would have been necessary if the disease was identified earlier. It can also shorten their life expectancy. No one wants to learn their future has been adversely affected due to someone else’s mistake.

Examples of cancer negligence include:

• Not requesting scans or other tests when symptoms indicate cancer could be present
• Misinterpreting scans, smears, or different test results
• Losing test results and delaying obtaining new samples
• Incorrect or inappropriate treatment, including issues with chemotherapy and other medication

Oncology negligence can also extend to mismanagement of a patient’s treatment including prescribing or dispensing medication incorrectly, or not informing a patient about types of treatment available and the benefits and risks associated with each. Patients cannot claim compensation for developing cancer, but they may have a case for compensation if they can prove that negligent care led to the worsening of their condition.

Delayed Cancer Diagnosis

Cancer Research how an average of 850 people are diagnosed with cancer every day in the UK, totalling 309,500 people a year. Cancer is rarely a disease which attacks suddenly. There usually are warning signs which send people to their GP. Early diagnosis is the key to successful treatment, and that comes down not only to people visiting their GP when they are worried, but also to their doctor identifying the symptoms and referring them for further tests, or to a specialist who can make an accurate diagnosis.

LPS are skilled at helping the victims of delayed cancer diagnosis to obtain the recognition and compensation they deserve. As the claimant, the onus is on you to prove that the delay in diagnosis caused your health to worsen and that your treatment would have been less invasive or more successful had it begun earlier. In severe instances, we support and represent the families for whom the delay has proven fatal.

An example of a successful claim made for a victim of delayed cancer diagnosis involved a woman in her 20s who showed symptoms of cervical cancer. Despite her requests, her GP dismissed her appeal for a cervical smear, stating he felt the symptoms were related to hormones and cervical erosion. Three months later, the victim returned to the same surgery and saw a different GP who immediately referred her for a biopsy and subsequent hysterectomy. Although grateful to be in remission, the woman, who was newly married with plans to start a family, was devastated to be left infertile.

Solicitors representing the woman were able to prove that her initial symptoms were significant enough to warrant a referral for a cervical smear and, had this been done, it was highly likely that she would have been able to receive treatment without losing her fertility.

What to do now?

We suggest that you contact our expert team for a free no-obligation consultation. There is nothing to lose! If you are busy, you can click here to arrange a callback time or alternatively, you can call 08009961807 and ask to speak to our family department experts.

Cancer Negligence Claims

Incorrect Cancer Diagnosis

We not only support clients who have not received the medical care they deserve, but who may have undergone stressful and damaging procedures and treatment which were unnecessary.

Imagine being told you are critically ill – possibly terminally so – only to realise that the specialist was mistaken in their diagnosis. While you and your loved ones would understandably be relieved to have a positive prognosis, the harm done to your body by unnecessary radiotherapy or chemotherapy, nevermind the mental strain and psychological pain placed on patients preparing for a painful course of treatment, and the financial implications of being unable to work.

Our medical negligence solicitors can provide relevant legal advice and guidance on how to claim compensation for physical and financial harm. They can represent you and negotiate on your behalf to obtain legal recognition for your suffering, and help ensure your future and that of your loved ones is not a bleak one through financial hardship.

How Can We Help?

Starting a claim for cancer-related medical negligence is as simple as contacting LPS. We recognise that you have already been through more than anyone should have to endure so we do all we can to make the process as simple as possible. We will speak to you directly about your situation, assessing it and advising on whether your claim has a high chance of success.

Factors taken into consideration when awarding compensation include loss of earnings and potential future earnings, physical and mental pain and suffering, and the cost of future rehabilitation and care.

The next step is to obtain the medical evidence necessary to prove your claim, and we can put you in contact with medical experts who can assist with this. We will then submit your request to the health provider, outlining the cause and effect and requesting appropriate compensation. Only if these negotiations are unsuccessful will we refer your case to trial as we appreciate it will just add stress to what is already a stressful time for you and your family.

You need to lodge a cancer negligence claim within three years of when the negligent treatment was received. If the patient is under the age of 18 at the time, they have until the day before they turn 21 to make a claim. It is worth noting that this timeline is only for the initial application and that there is no limit on the duration a claim can take to process.