UK BREAST CANCER COMPENSATION CLAIMS

More than one in ten women will be diagnosed with breast cancer and early detection, through self examination and mammograms is a key factor in successful treatment and higher survival rates. Cancer of the breast often responds well to early treatment however sometimes even after a woman feels a lump, her cancer goes undetected for months often due to medical negligence which results in more legal claims for cancer of the breast than any other disease. Often the victims of undetected cancer are younger women and doctors may rely too heavily on negative mammogram results even if the woman has felt a lump. Younger women's breast tissue is denser and a mammogram may miss small tumours. In addition doctors rely too heavily on a woman's age as a predicting factor as breast cancer is more often associated with older women and doctors often do not to take younger women's complaints seriously.

Medical negligence is a broad term used to describe any treatment, lack of treatment, or other departure from accepted standards of medical care, health care, or safety on the part of a health care provider which causes harm to a patient. Medical negligence can include misdiagnosis, improper treatment, failure to treat, delay in treatment, failure to perform appropriate follow-up and prescription errors. The standard of a doctor or surgeon's care is measured against that of his or her peers. If a significant body of fellow practitioners would have acted in the same way confronted with the same circumstances a practitioner will not be found to be negligent however if one of a number of alternative methods of treatment was used even though it was supported by a body of medical practitioners, a finding of negligence may still result if the method of treatment did not stand up to logical analysis.

Medical negligence by doctors in misdiagnosed breast cancer cases includes

• Failing to perform a breast examination (during a physical or while treating patient for other reasons) which would have identified a clinically obvious tumour
• Failure to identify an obvious lump during breast examination
• Failure to arrange mammogram x-rays, ultrasound, CT scan or MRI scan
• Failure to properly evaluate biopsy or test results
• Mistaking a tumour for an infection or diagnosing the tumour as benign
• Failure to follow up on test results
• Failure to order a biopsy
• Failure to order future tests
• Failure to follow up with the patient
• Disregarding history of sharp pain in breast
• Failure to determine the cause of nipple discharge
• Failure to recognize common symptoms

Cancer treatment including chemotherapy and radiation is designed to kill living cells and the pain and suffering and financial hardship can be horrendous. Early diagnosis may mean less pain and suffering, less financial hardship and a greater chance of survival. If you believe that your doctor has been negligent and you would like free advice on our Legal Aid and no win no fee compensation claim service then just complete the contact form and a member of The Law Society panel of medical negligence experts will telephone you.