New Jersey Cancer Misdiagnosis Lawyer

doctor giving a cancer misdiagnosis to a patient

You trust your doctor to diagnose problems correctly and prescribe the correct treatment to give you the best chance of a positive outcome. While doctors are not miracle workers, cannot see the future, and cannot guarantee outcomes, doctors are held to a high standard to provide medical care that meets the industry’s standard of care. When a physician fails to diagnose and treat cancer quickly, the consequences can be life-threatening. Any delay in diagnosing or mistakes in the treatment of cancer decrease the patient’s chance of surviving. Patients and families who are victims of cancer misdiagnosis and mistreatment may be entitled to millions of dollars in damages for compensation of the harm they suffered because of the medical malpractice of a physician or team of medical professionals.

The New Jersey medical malpractice attorneys at Nagel Rice, LLP represent individuals and families who have suffered because of medical malpractice. For a free consultation and no-obligation case review, contact us today. You deserve to have an attorney who understands medical malpractice laws and who cares about you and your family.

Our firm has recovered millions of dollars for people who have suffered or whose loved ones have died as a result of a misdiagnosis, or a delay in diagnosis, of cancer. Two such cases involving misdiagnosis of breast cancer resulted in settlement amounts of $700,000 and $400,000. In addition, a $980,000 settlement was obtained in a case involving the failure to timely diagnose melanoma. Click here to review more medical malpractice verdicts and settlements.

What is a Cancer Misdiagnosis?

It was estimated that roughly 1.68 million new cancer cases would be diagnosed in 2016. The number of deaths from cancer during 2016 was expected to total 595,690 people. Over the next two decades, cancer cases are expected to increase by 22 million. However, the cancer death rate in the United States fell by 13 percent from 2004 through 2013. The decrease could be in part from advances made in cancer treatments and advances made in the diagnostic tools used to identify cancer earlier. Diagnosing cancer early is crucial for successful treatment.

However, some cancer cases are misdiagnosed, if the cancer is discovered at all. Potential reasons for a patient’s cancer to have a delayed diagnosis or to be misdiagnosed include:

  • Physicians fail to listen or take a patients’ complaints seriously
  • Doctors fail to understand the significance of patients’ symptoms
  • Signs of a cancerous lesion are overlooked upon examination or in a biopsy
  • Specimens collected from a patient are not handled or labeled properly, misread or misinterpreted, or contaminated
  • Physicians fail to order diagnostic tests or the correct diagnostic tests, including blood work
  • Physicians fail to follow-up with testing, treatment, or care
  • Cancerous tumors are incorrectly diagnosed or misclassified in terms of aggressiveness
  • Doctors or technicians misdiagnose a malignant mass as benign
  • Patients with elevated risks of developing cancer aren’t screened frequently or carefully enough

Unfortunately, there are many ways that cancer can be missed or misdiagnosed. As discussed above, early detection and treatment of cancer can increase a patient’s chance of survival. When a patient is harmed because of a cancer misdiagnosis or failure to diagnose cancer, the patient and his or her family may have a medical malpractice claim against the doctor and other medical providers.

A cancer misdiagnosis attorney can help families and individuals seek compensation and justice for their injuries and damages caused by medical malpractice. The skilled medical malpractice attorneys at Nagel Rice believe that victims are entitled to receive compensation for their loss of income, medical expenses, physical pain, mental anguish and diminished quality of life.

Mistreatment of Cancer Case

In addition to misdiagnosing or failing to diagnose cancer, a doctor can harm a patient by failing to treat cancer properly. There are several forms of treatment for cancer, based on the type and stage of cancer, and on the patient’s overall health condition and medical history.

If a doctor fails to prescribe the correct treatment, the patient may suffer severe harm or wrongful death. A distinction has to be made, however, between incorrect treatment and poor outcomes. In spite of a doctor doing everything correctly, the patient may not respond as expected to cancer treatment. This situation is different from medical malpractice.

Medical malpractice because of the mistreatment of cancer can result from several causes. An error in the treatment of cancer can occur because:

  • The doctor uses an outdated treatment process
  • The cancer was misdiagnosed causing a treatment plan to be incorrect
  • There is an error made with prescription or administration of medication
  • The treatment method used has a poor success rate
  • Unnecessary treatments are used
  • The doctor fails to perform surgery or performs unnecessary surgery

Some treatments for cancer, including radiation and chemotherapy, can cause permanent damage. If a person did not require these aggressive forms of cancer treatment, the patient may suffer great physical, emotional, and financial harm. Consequently, the doctor may be guilty of medical malpractice.

Proving Medical Malpractice for Cancer Misdiagnosis and Mistreatment in New Jersey

If you believe you are the victim of medical malpractice regarding your cancer diagnosis or treatment, a good first step is to consult with the medical malpractice attorneys at Nagel Rice. Our legal team will review all pertinent medical records, including the doctor’s notes to file, orders, imaging studies, and other diagnostic tests. We work closely with several industry experts who have extensive experience in cancer medical malpractice cases.
To prove a cancer medical malpractice claim or a medical negligence claim, we must prove that your medical provider was negligent in the diagnosis or treatment of your cancer. Negligence is the most difficult element to prove in a medical malpractice claim. To prove negligence in a medical malpractice lawsuit, we must provide evidence that proves the care you received fell below the acceptable standard of care. The standard of care is defined as the care that a reasonable practitioner in the same area of medicine would have provided under the same circumstances.

Therefore, in such cases, in order to prove medical malpractice, we must get testimony from medical experts regarding what would be considered acceptable and reasonable treatment based on accepted standards within the medical field. Because the defense team will also retain their own experts to provide testimony, a medical malpractice lawsuit is usually a complex undertaking. This is why you need our experienced New Jersey medical malpractice attorneys to handle your claim.

Nagel Rice: Experienced New Jersey Cancer Misdiagnosis Lawyers

At Nagel Rice, LLP, our experienced personal injury lawyers handle cancer medical malpractice claims throughout New Jersey. Contact us today to discuss your case with a legal professional at no charge to you. We are dedicated to protecting the rights of individuals and families who have been injured by medical malpractice. We fight to recover the compensation you deserve for the pain and suffering you have endured due to cancer misdiagnosis and/or mistreatment.

Nagel Rice LLP helps their clients with their cancer misdiagnosis claims throughout New Jersey including Bergen County, Essex County, Middlesex County, Monmouth County, Morris County, Passaic County, and Sussex County.