Ignoring Signs Of Colon Cancer May Trigger A Medical Malpractice Case
Delayed diagnosis lawsuits often happen within the context of cancer. Take for example advanced colon cancer. A frequently seen issue that an attorney handling cancer malpractice cases is often approached about related to physicians dismissing patient complaints of blood in the stool as being caused by hemorrhoids without ever doing any testing. Some of the other most often seen delayed diagnosis scenarios involve advanced breast cancer, advanced prostate cancer and advanced colon cancer. Let’s, however, maintain focus on colon cancer.
One pattern that comes up far too frequently involves a physician informing a patient who has complaints of blood in the stool that the patient merely has hemorrhoids and there is nothing to be concerned about. Yet, the blood later turns out to have been because of colon cancer all along. How does this happen and what options does the patient and his or her family have when it does happen?
The first thing to notice is that the majority of physicians are in agreement that if a patient presents with rectal bleeding or blood in the stool a colonoscopy should be completed in order to determine the cause of the blood. The colonoscopy is a procedure that helps determine whether the blood is the result of colon cancer or something else such as hemorrhoids. However solely concluding that the blood is caused by hemorrhoids, without performing appropriate tests, risks missing a cancer.
If appropriate tests (such as a colonoscopy) are performed when the patient first show symptoms consistent with colon cancer it is possible that the cancer will be found before it reaches an advanced stage. Early diagnosis generally means that the cancer can be removed surgically (or possibly even wtih a colonoscopy) and the patient may not require chemotherapy. Early detection also frequently means that the patient has a much better likelihood of surviving the cancer. Thus a delay in diagnosing the cancer and treating the patient that is long enough to allow the cancer make it to an advanced stage will require that the patient go through additional or further treatments and markedly lowers the chance that the patient will survive the cancer.When sufficient time passes before the patient is diagnosed the cancer will advanced to a late stage. When the cancer reaches a late stage the patient has fewer treatment options and is more likely to die as a result of cancer.
To figure out if you might have a medical malpractice claim against a doctor or other health care provider please contact a medical negligence lawyer. The above is meant neither as medical advice nor legal advice. Please consult with a physician regarding any health issues and before taking any medical advice. Consult with an attorney concerning any possible legal claim.