QUESTION

2 years at one hospital and they found nothing, second hospital found he had stage 3 cancer after the first visit. Viable case or no?

Asked on Sep 26th, 2012 on Medical Malpractice - Minnesota
More details to this question:
This is not for me but a friend. He is worried about causing a stir, but I really think he has a viable case. For the last couple years he has been really sick. He kept returning to the local hospital only to be told there is nothing wrong with him. It got to the point where they acted like, oh no not this guy again. A while back he had coughed up some blood and in shorthand they told him it couldn't have been it must have been coffee or something. It was at this point he said give me my records I'm going somewhere else. After one appointment they had figured out he had stage 3 cancer. This other hospital had almost 2 years to figure this out and it could have been caught at a much early stage! I don't know the details or what they tests they did, but you'd think in 2 years they would have seen something in the tests they did that would have red flagged it?
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1 ANSWER

Catastrophic Injury Attorney serving Roseland, NJ at John J. Ratkowitz
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If he reported to the hospital with persistent respiratory problems for two years, it sounds like he has a case worth investigating.  The big question in most failure to diagnose cancer cases is whether the plaintiff can prove that the defendant’s negligent care proximately caused the damages suffered by the plaintiff. In essence, the plaintiff must be able  to show that earlier intervention would have changed the outcome. This is  a fact sensitive inquiry. An attorney will have to review the medical records and often get experts to review the pertinent radiography films to determine when accepted standards of care should have compelled a doctor to investigate the possible diagnosis. Then, if it is determined that the cancer was present and detectible, the next question becomes what was the likely stage/prognosis when the cancer should have been discovered. If the cancer was at an early stage when it should have been discovered, the case is more likely to be viable. If you want to investigate your case further, you should contact a local medical malpractice attorney (one in your state).  They take these cases on a contingency basis which means you only have to pay if you succeed.  Additionally, initial consultations are usually free. You can use the "Find a Lawyer" service through this website to research medical malpractice attorneys.  Then, visit each attorney's website and look for a firm that has a record of successful verdicts.  Click here for an article that discusses the three main questions I ask when deciding whether to investigate a potential medical malpractice case. This discusses the issue of financial viability. Click here for an article that explains what you can expect when filing a medical malpractice case. Click here for more information about me. Click here for more information about my firm. Please note that by attempting to answer your question, I am not acting as your attorney. I will do nothing further to protect or preserve your interests in the absence of any additional discussion with you about this matter. John Ratkowitz, Esq. Starr, Gern, Davison & Rubin, P.C. 105 Eisenhower Parkway Roseland, NJ 07068 Office: (973) 830-8441 Cell: (732) 616-6278 Fax: (973) 226-0031 Email: jratkowitz@starrgern.com  Skype: john_ratkowitz Web: www.starrgern.com.
Answered on Sep 27th, 2012 at 2:14 PM

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