If Your Doctor Failed to Timely Diagnose Your Lung Cancer, You May Have a Claim
Like most cancers, early detection is crucial to surviving lung cancer. It can prove challenging to detect lung cancer in its earliest stages because there are very few signs and symptoms. The earliest signs of lung cancer, such as an odd and persistent cough, may not show until the cancer has become more advanced.
Failing to detect lung cancer at this stage of development can be fatal. Doctors who observe signs of advanced lung cancer and fail to act can be held accountable for their negligence. The experienced NY medical malpractice attorneys at Wingate, Russotti, Shapiro, Moses & Halperin, LLP understand how critical early detection and prompt treatment can be for cancer patients.
Call us at (212) 986-7353 for more information about pursuing your legal rights.
Recognizing the Symptoms
For many, their lung cancer isn't detected until it has already reached stage three, which could be too late. This is why people with a high risk of lung cancer should receive early screenings. Once cancer has advanced enough to show obvious symptoms like:
- A cough that lingers
- A cough that becomes deeper and hoarse
- Shortness of breath
- Chest pain
- Wheezing
- Weight loss
- Bone pain
- Headaches
Patients who have any combination of these symptoms should receive a screening right away.
Lung cancer is curable when it's diagnosed and treated early. When there is a failure to make a timely diagnosis, the at-fault party is often the family physician or a radiologist. Some forms of negligence or carelessness that can result in missed diagnosis or delayed diagnosis of lung cancer include:
- Failure to order tests
- Family doctor or primary care physician misread chest x-ray
- Failure to recognize an abnormality on the x-ray
- Failure to recognize a sign or symptom that requires more attention or follow-up
Our Track Record
The knowledgeable NY medical malpractice attorneys at Wingate, Russotti, Shapiro, Moses & Halperin, LLP have a long and successful track record when it comes to handling failure to diagnose cancer cases.
In one recent case, the family of a 73-year-old man who died after his doctor failed to diagnose small cell lung cancer was able to receive $1.75 million through our efforts. That patient died because notes from the hospital's radiologist requesting an investigation into his lesion never made it to the patient’s chart. No CT scan was performed, and the patient was discharged without any knowledge of the lung lesion.
In another case, our law firm was able to help a family recover $2.5 million for their wrongful death case. In that case, the pulmonologist failed to recommend or perform a lung biopsy even after the CT scan showed growth of a lung lesion. The doctor failed to compare the CT scan with an earlier test to see how the lesion changed. The 11-month delay in diagnosis allowed the cancer to advance and the woman died 20 months after being diagnosed.
If you've lost a loved one because they weren't diagnosed with cancer early, you may be able to pursue compensation for your losses. Our experienced New York medical malpractice lawyers can review your case and help you receive the support you need and rightfully deserve.
Call us at (212) 986-7353 for a free consultation and comprehensive case evaluation.
Additional Information
- How Lavern’s Law Can Help Cancer Patients
- Lung Cancer - American Cancer Society
- Lung Cancer Info - Mayo Clinic
- Lung Cancer/Bronchogenic carcinoma - MedlinePlus
NY Failure to Diagnose Cancer Verdicts & Settlements
$2.5 Million - Failure to Timely Diagnose Lung Cancer
$1.75 Million - Medical Malpractice Wrongful Death: Failure to Diagnose Lung Cancer
$1 Million - Failure to Diagnose Lung Cancer
$750,000 - Failure to Diagnose Lung Cancer