My Doctor Failed to Diagnose My Cancer. Do I Have a Malpractice Claim?

Some types of cancers are incurable statistically such that we cannot show a delay made a difference. Alternatively, some cancers are associated with such positive results that a delay in diagnosis may not result in a different outcome.

The most important part to a failure to diagnose case is determining when the diagnosis should have been made and then showing that the outcome would have been different (usually much different is needed) (i.e. the patient could have avoided death or mastectomy or removal of a body part or portion; etc.). Tennessee does not recognize cases that are based on loss of the best chance to cure.

Here are a few questions to ask when determining if you have a cancer medical malpractice claim:

• Where did the cancer start? (Lung, testicular/ovarian, breast).
• What stage was the cancer at time of diagnosis?
• Has any doctor advised what the stage would have likely been if diagnosed earlier?
• What are medical providers saying about your prognosis?
• How long was the delay in diagnosis?

Please don’t hesitate to call our office at (423) 928-0165 to see if The Haynes Firm can help you!