Cancer is a deadly disease that claims the lives of more than 600,000 people in the U.S. each year. Successfully treating cancer depends on physicians diagnosing and treating the disease before it has an opportunity to spread to other areas of the body. Yet far too often patients are misdiagnosed or undiagnosed, contributing to the progression of the disease and potentially death.
Pursuing a claim against a provider for failing to diagnose or misdiagnosing cancer can be complex. As an experienced Greenville, SC medical malpractice lawyer, Bobby Jones has a proven-track record of advocating for victims of cancer misdiagnosis. We can help you and your loved ones recover the compensation that you deserve.
Some Reasons that Cancer is Commonly Misdiagnosed or Undiagnosed
When a physician fails to diagnose and treat cancer in the early stages it can result in the progression of the disease. Once it progresses, the patient will likely require more aggressive and costly forms of treatment. In some instances, the disease will have progressed to a later stage where treatment is not possible.
Cancer often goes undiagnosed or is misdiagnosed because there are so many different variations of the disease and symptoms often suggest another form of disease. For example, endometriosis and ovarian cancer often involve similar symptoms. Both can cause pelvic pain, constipation, and irregular menstrual bleeding. Diagnosing the patient with one when it is actually the other can result in the patient receiving inadequate or improper treatment. Another common example is failing to test for and diagnose moles as melanoma.
Several reasons why physicians often fail to diagnose or misdiagnose cancer include:
- Lab errors. Physicians will occasionally order the correct tests but lab errors such as confusing the patient’s sample with another’s results in a misdiagnosis.
- Misinterpreting results. A physician or lab may order the correct test and analyze the correct sample but make a mistake in analyzing the results.
- Misreading symptoms. Physicians often diagnose and treat the symptoms rather than the patient. For example, a patient may complain of shortness of breath and wheezing. The physician diagnoses the patient with asthma or bronchitis when it is in fact lung cancer.
There are a potentially unlimited number of possibilities of physician error in failing to diagnose or misdiagnosing cancer. If your physician failed to identify or misidentified an instance of cancer, it is important to consult with an experienced Greenville, SC medical malpractice lawyer to discuss your rights and options.
Discuss Your Case with an Experienced Greenville, SC Medical Malpractice Lawyer
If you or someone that you know has suffered an injury due to a provider’s failure to diagnose or misdiagnosis of a cancerous condition, contact us today for a FREE consultation. Bobby Jones is a reputable and highly experienced Greenville, SC medical malpractice lawyer and nationally recognized trial lawyer. Bobby Jones has recovered over $35 million dollars in compensation for his clients.
Bobby Jones Law serves clients throughout the state of South Carolina with offices conveniently located in Greenville.
