Ovarian cancer misdiagnosis claims

Prompt diagnosis and early treatment of ovarian cancer can often mean the patient has a good chance of making a full recovery. Misdiagnosis of ovarian cancer however can mean the disease has a chance to spread to other parts of your body, making it more difficult to treat, and inflicting a far greater amount of suffering on the victim and their family. If you have suffered an ovarian cancer misdiagnosis, you may be entitled to make a compensation claim to help address this additional suffering.

Making an Ovarian Cancer Misdiagnosis Claim

Any action on the part of medical professional that contributes to a misdiagnosis of ovarian cancer, and subsequently delayed treatment, could mean you are entitled to make a compensation claim.

Should you, following consultation with a legal expert, decide to proceed with such a claim, the extent to which your misdiagnosis can be shown to have worsened your condition and / or your prognosis will play a central part in determining how much ovarian cancer misdiagnosis compensation you eventually receive.

GPs receive extensive training in how to recognise the signs of ovarian cancer, and which precautions to take in order to avoid a misdiagnosis. As such, instances such as the following could constitute acts of negligence on the part of your doctor(s), and are good examples of where it may be appropriate to make a compensation claim for misdiagnosis of ovarian cancer:

• Where upon presenting to your doctor with symptoms that may indicate a threat of ovarian cancer, he or she fails to conduct the necessary medical tests or investigations to determine whether or not this is the case.
• Where you doctor fails to follow up on or investigate further test results which produce an abnormal or concerning result.
• Where your doctor fails to refer you to a specialist to examine potentially concerning test results or indications.
• Where medical professionals responsible for your care repeatedly misdiagnose your ovarian cancer as another, less serious affliction.
• Where medical professionals fail to administer the correct care, or do so via the wrong means / method.
• Where your condition is misdiagnosed as being ovarian cancer when in fact it is not, leading to significant mental anguish and potentially to unnecessary and / or harmful treatment procedures.

These circumstances do not denote an exhaustive list of situations where it may be appropriate to make a claim for ovarian cancer misdiagnosis. If you are unhappy with the manner in which your condition was diagnosed, or with the treatment you have subsequently received you should seek advice from a legal expert to determine whether making an ovarian cancer misdiagnosis claim is the right path for you.

When you contact Blackwater Law Clinical negligence solicitors you’ll speak to expert advisors with extensive experience in handling ovarian cancer misdiagnosis claims, and securing the maximum possible compensation based on the individual circumstances of each and every one. Ranked by the Legal 500 as one of the leading legal teams in the South East, we’ll deliver the very best support right through the claims process, keeping you informed at every stage.

Ovarian Cancer Stages and Grades

When you are diagnosed with ovarian cancer, one of the first things that will happen is your condition will be assessed to determine which stage the disease has reached. This essentially summarises how far the disease has spread through your body, and an ovarian cancer misdiagnosis makes it more likely you will be diagnosed with a later-stage form of the disease.

• Stage 1: This is where the cancer remains confined to one or both of your ovaries
• Stage 2: Where the cancer has spread from your ovaries into the pelvis or into the womb
• Stage 3: This is where the cancer has spread to the stomach, the surface of your bowel or the lymph glands in your pelvis or stomach
• Stage 4: This is the most serious stage where the disease has spread throughout your body to regions such as your liver or your lungs

Your condition will also be graded from 1 to 3, according to how aggressive your ovarian cancer is, and how quickly it is likely to spread. Avoiding ovarian cancer misdiagnoses is particularly important when the patient is suffering from a more aggressive form of the disease, as the window for successful treatment is smaller.

Causes of Ovarian Cancer

Ovarian cancer is essentially the rapid growth and development of ovarian cysts; collections of abnormal cells in one or both ovaries. No definitive cause for the disease has yet been identified, however some medical experts speculate that the disease can develop as a result of faulty genes, including breast cancer genes 1 and 2 (BRCA1 and BRCA2).

Some groups of women are known to be at higher risk of contracting ovarian cancer than most, these include:

• Those who have never had children
• Those who have in the past taken fertility drugs
• Women aged over 50

Specialists in Cancer Misdiagnosis Claims

Our clinical negligence solicitors have successfully helped people who have suffered cancer misdiagnoses in relation to all forms of the disease. If your care in the build-up to a thyroid cancer, bladder cancer or ovarian cancer diagnosis – or your care thereafter – was substandard we can help you; and we encourage you to get in touch.

We have the knowledge and experience to successfully take on all manner of cancer misdiagnosis claims – but it’s important you get in contact as soon as possible, as time restrictions may apply to your case.