Over the years I have represented numerous patients whose cancer was not timely diagnosed in military or VA hospitals, and who subsequently suffered damages as a result. Such cases are very demanding because cancer, as we all know, can be a deadly disease if not timely diagnosed and treated. The legal challenge in such cases is to prove that government health care providers failed to diagnose the cancer and that such failure resulted in damages to the patient. In many cases the military/VA doctor may have been negligent but the negligence did not effect the ultimate outcome. For example, if a doctor ignores the lump in a woman’s breast and two months later another doctor performs a biopsy of that lump and determines it to contain cancer, there will be no damages, and therefore no case, if the cancer is Stage I. Why? Because the two month delay made no difference in the ultimate outcome–the cancer two months earlier was obvioulsy Stage I and the treatment required to treat the cancer had not changed. However, if 18 months had passed before the cancer was diagnosed, and if the cancer had advanced to Stage III with involvement of lymph nodes, then a viable malpractice case could exist. In this instance the patient would have sustained substantial injuries because her life expectancy would have statistically diminished and the treatment required to deal with her cancer would also have changed. For instance, she likely would now require the removal of her entire breast and not simply the cancerous lump. She would also require chemo and radiation therapy which otherwise might not have been necessary. She also would probably be prevented from working or performing household duties while she underwent these treatments. These damages are significant and worthy of pursuing in a tort claim.
If you or a member of your family is diagnosed with cancer and you believe your military/VA doctors were negligent, please contact our firm, the Military Medical Malpractice Legal Network. We can assess your treatment and determine whether you were the victim of substandard care and whether that negligent care resulted in damages for which you are entitled to compensation. It is important that you consult an attorney shortly after your diagnosis so as not to allow the statute of limitations to run out. Timely attorney consultation will also insure that all necessary records are secured before they are lost, misplaced, or altered.
