
Solicitor and Managing Partner
Gillian Gadsby
If you have been affected by a cancer misdiagnosis due to negligence, we have over 25 years' experience and expertise to help you claim the compensation you deserve.
Hearing that you or a family member has cancer can be devastating, but the sooner there is a diagnosis, the better. Cancer misdiagnosis can delay treatment, affect your prognosis, your treatment options and your chances of recovery.
A cancer misdiagnosis generally occurs on one of three ways:
In the first two, we have to consider how a patient’s cancer has progressed as a result of the delayed diagnosis. Our experts will establish:
Whether a misdiagnosis is negligent will depend on the circumstances surrounding what happened. It could be that you experienced a breach of duty by your GP or your medical specialist. Perhaps signs and symptoms were dismissed and there was a failure to take further action, or a radiologist misinterpreted a scan and wrongly reported information back to a healthcare professional.
A misdiagnosis or delay in diagnosis may not be grounds for a cancer negligence claim if there was reasonable cause to pursue other diagnoses prior to this. This could be due to the symptoms being more indicative of another condition, or there being a need to rule out conditions that presented a more urgent concern to a patient’s health.
There may also be delays to diagnosis due to a lack of funding available for procedures related to an alternative condition. Mrs M’s story explains this situation in more detail.
If a person’s quality or length of life is impacted by a cancer misdiagnosis, compensation can help support them and their family through the difficult times ahead.
Compensation for cancer misdiagnosis claims can be used towards:
While we are unable to provide a definitive timeline on a case, as each one is individual, we would typically expect a misdiagnosis claim to take between two and five years to reach final settlement. This depends on the defendants’ stance and the length of time it takes to receive an accurate prognosis from medical professionals.
To ensure your medical negligence claim is valid and that you receive the best outcome possible, your solicitors must take the appropriate time to complete investigations. Any promise of a quick result is usually unfounded and quite likely to be untrue.
As is the case for all medical negligence claims, there is a general time limit of three years from when the injury is realised for someone to make a misdiagnosis claim. However, there are exceptions to this rule which include:
Claimants under the age of 18 who have until their 21st birthday to make a claim
If the claimant is mentally incapacitated at the time of the negligence occurring or as a result of the negligence, there is no limit on when they can make a claim
If the claimant passes away within the three-year time period for the claim to be brought, the three-year limit begins anew at the date of their death
Where a person dies as a result of their treatment, dependents who are under 18 at the time of that death have until 3 years after their 18th birthday to bring a claim
As qualified and specialised medical negligence solicitors with over 20 years experience, we are experts at handling cancer misdiagnosis claim cases.
Our credentials and established reputation mean that hospitals and trusts are willing to work with us, and often recommend us, to seek fair outcomes for claimants to receive the compensation they deserve.
Trust us with your compensation claim and contact us today to see how we can help you.
As is the case for all medical negligence claims, there is a general time limit of three years from when the injury is realised for someone to make a misdiagnosis claim. However, there are exceptions to this rule which include:
Claimants under the age of 18 who have until their 21st birthday to make a claim
If the claimant is mentally incapacitated at the time of the negligence occurring or as a result of the negligence, there is no limit on when they can make a claim
If the claimant passes away within the three-year time period for the claim to be brought, the three-year limit begins anew at the date of their death
Where a person dies as a result of their treatment, dependents who are under 18 at the time of that death have until 3 years after their 18th birthday to bring a claim
If you experience a delay due to the misdiagnosis of cancer, this can mean that the treatment you require is different or more severe, and that your long-term prognosis is worse.
For instance, you may now need chemotherapy in addition to surgery compared to six months earlier when surgery alone would have been enough. Or you may need a mastectomy for breast cancer when earlier diagnosis might have led to you just requiring a lumpectomy and not losing your breast. Your chances of five-year survival may also have been reduced.
If you believe you have suffered due to possible misdiagnosis or delayed diagnosis of cancer then you could be entitled to make a medical negligence compensation claim.
If you would like to know whether you have a cancer compensation claim due to delayed diagnosis or misdiagnosis, the first step is to get in touch with our specialist medical negligence solicitors. We have a range of ways for you to get in touch:
The first conversation we have will be exploratory. One of our clinical negligence team will take as many details as they can, ready to discuss with a solicitor. We will then inform you whether we think you have a case. We will never accept a case if we do not believe we will be able to make a successful claim.
If you would like to know more about Gadsby Wicks, the legal advice we offer and how we can help pursue a cancer misdiagnosis claim, please do not hesitate to get in touch.
If you or a loved one have experienced cancer misdiagnosis and would like to speak to someone about your options, our team is here to listen and advise you on your next steps.