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Reviewed by
Peter Rigby - Director of Medical Negligence | Last updated on: 5th September, 2023
We've got your Cancer Misdiagnosis Claim covered
- No win No fee
- Not just lawyers - real specialists
- No obligation
- UK's highest-rated medical negligence solicitors
Cancer Misdiagnosis Claims
In the last forty years, cancer survival rates have doubled which is very welcome news. Sadly, some cancer cases are missed and the wrong diagnosis can have devastating and far-reaching consequences. Medical professionals have a legal and professional obligation to provide their patients with an accurate diagnosis. Should cancer be misdiagnosed, your access to the right treatment may be delayed, and your condition may become more severe as a result.
Making a Cancer Misdiagnosis Claim
If the worst does happen and you find yourself seeking legal advice for a cancer misdiagnosis claim, either for yourself or a loved one, our expert team can provide guidance and reassurance during a truly devastating time. All it takes is one quick phone call to start your cancer misdiagnosis compensation claim. From there we will guide you through the process and explain:
- If we are able to take on your case and believe that we can win you the compensation you’re entitled to
- How your claim will be handled and what information we need from you
- How much your claim may be worth
- What compensation can help you with
- How our no win no fee agreements works
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What is a cancer misdiagnosis claim?
If you feel that during any stage of your cancer diagnosis or treatment, your case was not handled correctly and you received a delayed or incorrect diagnosis, then you may be able to make a cancer misdiagnosis claim. Catching cancer early on improves the chances of survival significantly, which is why any delay in diagnosis or treatment can be so costly. Every healthcare professional must treat patients according to a code of conduct and has a duty of care. When this duty has not been met, and the consequences have resulted in suffering that would otherwise have been avoided, this is considered to be medical negligence. If this has happened to you we will listen to your concerns with empathy and openness, helping to understand if you have a case, and to get you the support and answers you need.
Types of cancer Misdiagnosis
There are hundreds of types of cancers. Many cancers have early symptoms that are associated with less serious illnesses at first. This is just one reason why cancer may be misdiagnosed.
The NHS set targets to diagnose three-quarters of cancer cases at an early stage to help improve survival rates. As it stands, this target is not being met and we have helped thousands of patients overcome a cancer misdiagnosis for many types of cancer including:
- Breast cancer
- Prostate cancer
- Lung cancer
- Cervical cancer
- Bowel cancer
- Skin cancer
- Non-Hodgkin Lymphoma
Awareness of the signs and symptoms of each cancer is the first step in getting a diagnosis. There is more information on each of our cancer claim pages above.
Why is cancer misdiagnosed?
During early appointments, when you share your concerns with your doctor, you will likely be thoroughly examined or referred to a specialist if they believe further investigation is required. If a GP suspects you have cancer, they should make an urgent referral within two weeks. If this does not happen and you later learn you do have cancer, it can be treated as medical negligence. This is just one example of medical negligence, others include:
- Failing to request the proper tests in the right time period
- Misreading test results such as blood or tissue samples
- Not recording patient information or symptoms properly
- Diagnosing a different illness
- Prescribing the wrong treatment
A delayed diagnosis or a misdiagnosis can occur at any time, even when receiving treatment. The emotional upheaval of a cancer diagnosis, not to mention the physical effects, can be catastrophic, which is why we help patients across the UK to take action for their cancer misdiagnosis.
Cancer Misdiagnosis Payouts
Patient Claim Line has helped thousands of cancer sufferers secure cancer misdiagnosis payouts from NHS trusts and private clinics throughout the UK. For example, after our client’s lymphoma misdiagnosis, we were able to settle with Royal Liverpool and Broadgreen University Hospitals Trust which helped our client to rebuild his life. Cancer misdiagnosis are there to help you move forward and recover from your cancer misdiagnosis by helping you to pay for things like:
- The cost of any private healthcare you may need
- Ongoing medications and treatment plans
- Rehabilitation services
- Prosthetics, particularly ones that are not offered on the NHS
- Recovery from the trauma of a cancer misdiagnosis
- Travel costs
- Any changes to your living situation including adapting your home
There is no definite amount for a cancer misdiagnosis payout. Every case is decided according to the individual circumstances. Using a specialist cancer misdiagnosis solicitor ensures you have the absolute best chance of getting the maximum settlement you are entitled to.
Cancer Misdiagnosis Claim Experts
At Patient Claim Line, our specialist legal experts have extensive experience in supporting clients and delivering cancer misdiagnosis compensation. We understand the distress and devastation that can be caused by delayed, negligent or misdiagnosed cancer treatment. We have over 100 medical negligence solicitors based throughout the UK, and can offer a local service with the expertise and capacity of a national firm. While some firms take on cases in every area of the law, we only take on medical negligence cases. This means we are number one at what we do and help people just like you claim compensation for their cancer misdiagnosis every day.
No Win No Fee Cancer Misdiagnosis
Once we accept your claim, we always work on a no win no fee basis. This means that if you pursue your claim with us, and the claim is not successful, you walk away without having to pay us a penny. That’s our promise to you. We know that making a claim can seem daunting and want to make it as stress free as possible. Knowing you don’t have to pay a single penny unless we win your case means you have complete peace of mind when making your cancer misdiagnosis claim.
Why Choose Patient Claim Line for your Cancer Misdiagnosis Claim?
Not just lawyers — medical negligence experts
Patient Claim Line was established in 2014 and consists of a team of medical lawyers specialising in cancer negligence and general medical negligence claims.
At Patient Claim Line we have more than 100 solicitors with a combined experience of over 400 years and they will work on your behalf to achieve the best result possible for you.
It’s not enough to use a solicitor who sometimes covers medical negligence. You need someone who knows this area through and through. That is what the solicitors here at Patient Claim Line do. They deal exclusively in this area of law and are experts in the field.
Frequently asked questions about Cancer Misdiagnosis Claims
Our expert legal team answer your questions about making a Cancer Misdiagnosis Claim
If you or your GP are concerned about cancer symptoms, you should be offered an appointment with a specialist within 2 weeks of your General Practitioner (GP) making the referral. This is stated on the NHS
If you have already waited longer than the 2 weeks specified for your treatment, you are within your legal right to ask to be seen or treated by a different provider. In addition to this, the hospital or clinical commissioning group (CCG) must investigate and offer you a range of suitable alternative hospitals or clinics that would be able to see you .
If you’re not happy with the response, you can complain by following the NHS complaints procedure.
As solicitors specialising in cancer misdiagnosis, we know how important it is to estimate your compensation figure ahead of pursuing a claim. Although we cannot calculate an exact figure beforehand, our legal teams are here to support and advise on all critical aspects of your case.
This means that the more evidence we have, and the more we know about your cancer misdiagnosis, the better equipped we will be to deliver a fair and just final award.
There are now a range of screening options for many types of common cancers. Some cancers, however, are less common and can therefore be harder to detect. Pancreatic cancer can exist in the body for a long time before symptoms become obvious and, even then, can be misdiagnosed as digestive illnesses. Lymphoma can also be misdiagnosed as more common illnesses due to its effect on the immune system. Patients typically develop a cold or the flu more often which may be mistaken as a virus without uncovering the underlying cause.
Regardless of the type of cancer, if there has been an avoidable delay in treatment due to misdiagnosis, your claim for medical negligence will be investigated and our expert team will find out why it happened.
We are all impacted by cancer, in one way or another. Therefore, we want to be there for you should a member of your family, or a friend, become the victim of a wrong cancer misdiagnosis. You can claim on behalf of someone else if:
- Someone’s death was a result of a delay in the diagnosis of cancer or treatment
- If you are the spouse or child of an individual who unfortunately died as a result of negligence or a misdiagnosis
- If you’re the parent of a child under the age of 18
- If you can prove that you were financially dependent on the individual who has died
- You are acting on behalf of the Estate of the deceased person or you are sorting the affairs of the Deceased person
Ordinarily there’s a three-year time limit to submit your claim. That’s three-years from the date of the negligence or from your date of knowledge of the negligence, whichever is later. In the case of a deceased person, the three years runs from the date of death of a loved one.
When you make the claim itself, there is no set time frame. The time from initial consultation until final settlement will vary depending on the individual circumstances of your cancer misdiagnosis.
Meet our Cancer Misdiagnosis Team
Case Study
Sarah's Story
"Now we have peace of mind"
My husband, Nick, went back and forth to the doctors for a long time and tried everything the doctor recommended. But his illness got worse, to the point that he was in agony.
In the end we got so desperate that we asked for a referral. The doctor was reluctant, so we had to consult a private hospital. That’s when we found out there was a tumour. It took years from the onset of his illness to finally start cancer treatment.
He used to be a man with a lot to live for, but in the end he was in so much pain that he withdrew from the family. He became angry that nobody had helped him sooner, and the legal team were able to give him the validation that he was desperately seeking. The NHS confirmed if they had done more, Nick would still be alive today.
