CERVICAL CANCER COMPENSATION CLAIMS

One of the most frequent types of compensation claim seen by medical negligence solicitors in the United Kingdom is the failure to diagnose cervical cancer. Significant advances in medical knowledge have made it possible to effectively prevent and treat this illness through early detection, and thereby minimize the effects. Many medical mistakes can lead to a delay in diagnosis which may deprive patients of the chance for a cure and these include lost records, failing to realize the importance of a patient’s complaints, treating a patient inappropriately, misreading pap smears, inaccurate test results or failing to refer a patient to a cancer specialist.

Cervical cancer is generally regarded by the medical profession as a largely preventable disease due to the fact that pre-cancerous changes can usually be detected by pap smears obtained during routine pelvic examinations. Pap smears however must be carried out properly and interpreted by specialists. The following is an extract from a leading report on pap smears:

"... many women who are tested receive inaccurate results due to interpretative or reporting errors by cytopathology laboratories or specimen collection errors by clinicians. The failure of some physicians to provide adequate follow-up for abnormal pap smears is another source of delay in the management of cervical dysplasia..."

Early diagnosis as a result of pap smear screening could almost eliminate the chances of developing this invasive condition. One of the main causes of medical negligence is delay of diagnosis as a result of failure to perform appropriate screening tests by general practitioners or failure to take necessary steps when cancer of the cervix is suspected. Mistakes made by doctors include:

• Failure to identify a cancerous mass in the cervix during a routine cervical examination;
• Failure to test when a patient exhibits indicative symptoms;
• Failure to perform a pap smear;
• Failure to have a biopsy performed when the physical examination results are abnormal;
• Misinterpreting the pap smear or biopsy results;
• Failure to react quickly to biopsy findings;
• Failure to recommend appropriate treatment options;

Cervical cancer screening involves testing for precancerous developments often in the absence of any symptoms, to find precancerous lesions. Detection and treatment of precancerous cervical lesions can prevent cancer of the cervix from occurring. If cancer of the cervix is detected in its early stages, survival rates are very high with rapid and appropriate treatment. Pap smears are tests performed during the pelvic examination by inserting a speculum into the vagina and a sample of living cells is removed from the cervix using a wooden or plastic spatula. A second sample of cells is then taken from the inner part of the cervix. These samples are then microscopically analyzed for the presence of cancerous or precancerous changes.

If you believe that your doctor has been negligent and you would like free advice on our Legal Aid and no win no fee claim service then just complete the contact form and a member of The Law Society panel of medical negligence experts will telephone you to discuss your claim at no cost and with no obligation.