$8.2 Million Medical Malpractice Settlement
Failure to Diagnose Cancer Leading to Amputation
Our law offices recently represented a young woman who suffered a leg amputation as a direct result of medical negligence when her doctors and radiologists failed to diagnose her cancer. This medical malpractice involved a failure to identify clear indications on her X-ray and MRI that a cancerous bone condition called Osteosarcoma was present and rapidly growing. Without cancer treatment or surgery, it ultimately progressed to the point where it became untreatable and inoperable, requiring amputation. Our legal team was able to successfully secure a very substantial settlement exceeding $8,200,000 for our client, even though the insurance companies and lawyers for the doctors and hospital fought aggressively at every turn in their attempts to deny our client the monetary compensation she so rightly deserved. The medical insurers and their attorneys even went so far as to appeal certain rulings to both the Illinois Appellate Court and the Illinois Supreme Court, but ultimately the courts found in our favor and our legal team prevailed after many years of hard work.
What is a Failure to Diagnose?
In the realm of medical malpractice law, few terms are as consequential—or as potentially misunderstood—as “failure to diagnose.” This legal concept arises when a healthcare provider fails to identify a patient’s medical condition in a timely and accurate manner, leading to harm that could have been avoided with proper care. In many cases, a failure to diagnose can mean the difference between manageable treatment and irreversible harm—or even wrongful death.
Understanding Medical Malpractice
To grasp what a failure to diagnose means, it helps first to understand the broader legal category it falls under: medical malpractice. In legal terms, medical malpractice occurs when a healthcare professional deviates from the standard of care generally accepted by healthcare providers in that specialized medical area and that deviation directly causes harm or injury to the patient.
Standard of care refers to the actions a reasonably competent medical professional would take in a similar situation. It is not perfection, but it is professionalism, due diligence, and attentiveness in practice.
What Constitutes a Failure to Diagnose?
A failure to diagnose is just one type of medical malpractice. It occurs when a doctor or other healthcare provider either:
- Misses the diagnosis entirely,
- Delays the diagnosis beyond a reasonable timeframe, or
- Provides an incorrect diagnosis, leading to improper or delayed treatment.
Importantly, not every missed diagnosis is legally actionable. To rise to the level of malpractice, four legal elements must typically be proven:
- A Doctor-Patient Relationship Existed - The first requirement is straightforward: the provider must have been responsible for the patient’s care. This establishes a legal duty.
- The Doctor Was Negligent - Negligence means the doctor did not act in accordance with the standard of care. For instance, failing to order a test that most other reasonably competent doctors, in a similar situation, would have decided to order, could be seen as negligence.
- The Negligence Caused Harm - Even if a doctor acted negligently, there must be a clear link between that negligence and the injury or worsened condition. If a patient would have had the same outcome regardless of the missed diagnosis, there is likely no malpractice case.
- The Patient Suffered Damages - Finally, there must be measurable harm—physical, emotional, or financial. This can include prolonged illness, more aggressive treatment than would otherwise have been necessary, permanent disability, or death.
Common Conditions Often Involved in Failure to Diagnose Cases
Certain conditions are more commonly at the center of failure to diagnose claims, often because early detection is critical to successful treatment. These include:
- Cancer (especially breast cancer, lung, colon)
- Heart attacks
- Strokes
- Infections like sepsis or meningitis
- Pulmonary embolisms
Why Do Diagnostic Failures Happen?
A missed diagnosis may occur for a variety of reasons, including:
- Failure to order appropriate tests
- Misinterpretation of test results
- Inadequate patient evaluation
- Breakdowns in communication between providers
- Overworked or distracted medical staff
While some of these are understandable human errors, others may rise to the level of legal negligence.
Legal Remedies for Victims
Patients (or their families) who suffer harm due to a failure to diagnose may file a medical malpractice lawsuit to recover damages. Compensation may include:
- Medical expenses (past and future)
- Lost wages or earning capacity
- Pain and suffering
- Loss of consortium (for spouses)
- In some cases, punitive damages (for gross negligence)
These cases often require expert medical testimony to establish the standard of care and prove that the healthcare provider’s actions (or inactions) were a departure from it.
Call Sexner Injury Lawyers LLC for a Free Consultation
A failure to diagnose is more than a simple medical mistake—it can be a profound breach of a provider’s duty to their patient. If that breach leads to avoidable suffering, the legal system offers recourse.
If you or a loved one believes that a medical condition was missed or improperly handled, speaking with one of the experienced medical malpractice attorneys at Sexner Injury Lawyers LLC can help clarify your rights, deadlines and next steps. Attorney & founder Mitchell Sexner is often available to speak to you personally if you request. Our attorneys handle all other areas of medical malpractice as well, from sexual abuse of patients by doctors to birth injuries and our phones are open 24 hours a day at (312) 243-9922. Call us now.
