QUESTION

Is there anything I can do?

Asked on Nov 26th, 2012 on Medical Malpractice - California
More details to this question:
husband was diagnoised with prostate cancer. Had it surgicaly removed. There were no tests ran prior to surgery to see if it had spread. 5 months later he is diagnoised with stage 4 small cell cancer in his lung and it spread to his liver.
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1 ANSWER

Catastrophic Injury Attorney serving Roseland, NJ at John J. Ratkowitz
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If the ling cancer was metastatic from the prostate cancer, and they did not check to see if the prostate cancer spread, then you may have a medical malpractice case worth investigating.  The big question in most failure to diagnose cancer cases is whether the patient can prove that the doctor’s negligent care 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 and here for more information about me. 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 Nov 28th, 2012 at 2:14 PM

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