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For the various types of cancers, as with many other diseases, the key in obtaining the best possible outcome is early diagnosis. In fact, effective treatment today (including chemotherapy, radiation and surgery) has given great hope to cancer patients who receive early detection of their disease. Much has been accomplished in the past few years in terms of educating the public about early warning signs and symptoms of different cancers and the importance of seeking regular medical attention for early detection of cancer. However, there are still many people who, unfortunately, receive delayed cancer diagnoses -- not because of their own lack of awareness, but due to the error or negligence of their health care professionals.
Medical malpractice can occur in cancer cases in a number of ways. A health care professional can ignore a patient's complaints -- not taking them seriously enough to initiate further testing or referring the patient to the proper specialist. Or, a health care professional can simply misread tests and/or x-rays that could help detect cancer, thereby providing the patient with a negative reading ... and a false sense of security when the cancer is actually present and progressing. Screening for cancer, and being properly trained to quickly and accurately pinpoint the signs of the disease, are vital responsibilities of health care professionals. Failure to do so may constitute medical malpractice, and may mean the difference between life and death.
There are a number of different diagnostic tests and procedures that should be done for each specific form of cancer to maximize the chance of successful treatment. In addition, all health care professionals should be regularly evaluating their patients with appropriate medical histories and exams to determine, and address, any specific risk factors for different types of cancer.
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| Lung Cancer |
Lung cancer remains difficult to diagnose during the early stages of the disease because it often has vague symptoms in the first stages. However, it is the responsibility of the health care professional to look for symptoms that may indicate lung cancer, and to initiate further testing if anything seems unusual. These early symptoms can include a recurring lung condition (such as bronchitis or pneumonia) that doesn't get better with medication, chest pain, cough and bloody sputum, back/shoulder pain, shortness of breath and hoarseness or changed voice.
The best diagnostic tool for evaluating lung cancer is still the chest x-ray. Although chest x-rays are still not a very reliable test and frequently fail to show a cancerous mass, most of the time signs of cancer do show up on these x-rays. Unfortunately, there have been many medical malpractice cases involving health care professionals who have not been properly trained and who fail to identify growths on the x-rays, thereby missing the diagnosis of lung cancer.
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| Colon Cancer |
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There has been much recent attention given to the importance of having a colonoscopy, which is the diagnostic procedure used to detect colon cancer. While it is now recommended that people over age 40 get a colonoscopy every 5 years (and more often over age 50), health care professionals should be looking for warning signs of any increased risks in their patients. For example, patients with a drop in blood counts or an iron deficiency may be experiencing internal bleeding -- and further tests should be given to determine if there is blood in the stool. If so, this could indicate cancer in the gastrointestinal tract, and a colonoscopy should be performed as soon as possible.
Cases of medical malpractice regarding colon cancer most often center on health care professionals who fail to properly investigate patients complaints of rectal bleeding, and who do not initiate further testing or a colonoscopy for those at increased risk. In addition, some cases involve health care professionals who misread colonoscopy results. Health care professionals should be taking every precaution to initiate medical testing and accurately diagnose this type of cancer in the very early stages; failure to do so may be considered medical malpractice.
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| Brain Cancer |
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Like other types of cancer, brain cancer is often accompanied by warning signs that indicate the need for further testing. These signs include constant headache, loss of balance, severe pain in the skull, unexplained vomiting, change in personality or loss of sensation or motor control.
Health care professionals should look for these warning signs and order an MRI (Magnetic Resonator Imagery) scan of the brain to investigate the cause of these symptoms and look for any possible tumors. Treatment of brain cancer is enhanced if a tumor is identified early through testing, and if it is located in a place where it can be removed by a skilled brain surgeon. Health care professionals who fail to notice the warning signs of a possible brain tumor and do not request an MRI, or who do not read the MRI images correctly, may be considered negligent and may have committed medical malpractice.
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| Oral Cancer |
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The symptoms of oral cancer -- which appear as tumors or ulcerative masses in the mouth, on the tongue or on the lips -- are typically easier to see and diagnose. However, health care professionals (including dentists, internists or otolaryngolosits) who do not note these symptoms, as well as further investigate the symptoms of unchecked bleeding or numbness in the mouth, may have committed medical malpractice.
Health care professionals should be aware of the early signs of oral cancer (especially in patients who are smokers or who chew tobacco) and send the patient for further diagnostic testing, including an MRI, CAT scan or biopsy.
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| Kidney Cancer |
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When diagnosed early, kidney cancer can often be successfully treated; the infected kidney can be removed and the patient can live successfully on the other one. However, malpractice in this area is often seen when health care professionals fail to act on the early symptoms, which include flank pain, difficulty in urination or the inability to fully empty one's bladder. When presented with these symptoms, physicians should order a sonogram or CAT scan to check for cancer. Not ordering this diagnostic scan when needed, or not reading the results properly, can be signs of medical malpractice.
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| Breast Cancer |
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Misdiagnosing breast cancer is one of the biggest causes of medical malpractice cases, and one of the most agonizing examples of what can happen when a disease goes undetected by a health care professional. Since there has been so much progress in terms of public education about the value of early detection by patients through self-examination, the fact that many health care professionals are negligent in making a timely diagnosis -- resulting in the cancer progressing without proper treatment -- makes breast cancer malpractice issues even more devastating.
Medical malpractice in breast cancer often centers on a health care professional ignoring the warning signs and not ordering the proper testing to detect the disease in the early stages. Many times, a woman may find a lump upon self-examination only to be told by her physician that it is nothing to worry about, and doesn't warrant further testing. Not heeding a patient's complaints, failing to identify an obvious lump during an exam, failing to order a mammogram or perform a biopsy and misreading and/or not following up with the patient are all examples of errors on behalf of health care professionals that can often indicate that medical malpractice has occurred. Unfortunately, in an aggressive disease such as breast cancer, a delay in providing a timely and accurate diagnosis can lead to needless suffering, the loss of a breast and, often, death that may have been prevented with earlier detection and proper medical care.
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| Cervical Cancer |
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Once detected, cancers of the cervix (the opening at the bottom of the uterus that leads to the vagina) can be effectively treated with radiation, surgery or chemotherapy. If undiagnosed and left untreated, though, cervical cancer can sometimes spread to surrounding organs such as the bladder and rectum, as well as the lymph nodes.
Cervical cancer is easily diagnosed through a test called the Pap smear, which should be given to every woman on a regular basis. However, women with specific warning signs such as abnormal bleeding and persistent, foul-smelling vaginal discharge should be advised by their health care professional to undergo more frequent diagnostic testing. Medical malpractice most often occurs when health care professionals overlook these early warning signs and do not initiate immediate Pap smears and further testing to diagnose disease.
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| Ovarian/Uterine Cancers |
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Unfortunately, cancers of the uterus and ovaries often give few or no warning signs before reaching more advanced stages of the disease. However, there are some symptoms (including pelvic heaviness/abdominal discomfort, painful and erratic menstrual cycles and increased abdominal size) that should signal health care professionals to initiate further testing to check for signs of cancer.
Overlooking or ignoring these symptoms, and not ordering the proper tests (which include blood tests, ultrasound exams, abdominal CT scans and abdominal MRIs) may constitute medical malpractice.
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| Prostate Cancer |
Although there are many new diagnostic tools to diagnose cancer of the prostate gland in men, cases of prostate cancer are on the rise. Once identified, prostate cancer can be treated in a number of ways, including surgically implanting radioactive seeds around the gland, or surgery. However, the issue for many men centers on the fact that their prostate cancer was not diagnosed at an early stage, due to the oversight of their health care professional.
The diagnosis of prostate cancer can be made through an examination, or by a test for Prostate-Specific Antigens (known as a PSA test.) Medical malpractice most often occurs when health care professionals overlook symptoms and do not closely monitor patients at high risk for developing the disease, as well as when they fail to perform regular PSA and prostate exams on their patients. In addition, the failure to identify a mass upon examination, as well as the failure to perform a biopsy and conduct further follow-up if test results are abnormal, may also be indications of medical malpractice. | |
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