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Request A Call HereIn 2014, the life of a child was forever changed and all because a doctor failed to make the correct diagnosis.
After reading this blog, see more on Child Injuries Caused By Defective Products.
In February 2014, the parents of a six-year-old girl arrived at the pediatrician with a very sick child. Upon examination, doctors found that she had a high fever and a severely distended stomach - to the point where her mother described her as looking “pregnant”.
Her doctor diagnosed her with constipation, prescribed a laxative, and told her parents that she would get better once she passed some stool. But she didn’t get better, she only got worse.
A few days later her parents made the decision to take her to the ER where she was admitted for hospitalization. There, her doctors determined that she had acute leukemia which required immediate treatment. Luckily, her doctor’s were able to find a bone marrow match and she was cured of her leukemia, however, prior to the diagnosis, the malfunctioning blood cells stuck together to form a clot and cut off the blood flow in her lower spine, paralyzing her from the waist down. She is expected to require the use of a wheelchair for the rest of her life.
The child’s parents filed a medical malpractice lawsuit against the pediatrician on her behalf, alleging that if she had received treatment just a few days before the clot wouldn’t have formed and she wouldn’t have been paralyzed.
The parties agreed to settle out of court for a sum of $1.9 million, which has been placed in a trust fund for the child.
Her parents hope that this money will help to pay for new wheelchairs as she grows, lift equipment, and any other medical care she might require.
Cancer can attack any part of the body and there are literally hundreds of symptoms that a patient might present with. While a doctor may not be required to know how to treat every single type of cancer, they must have enough knowledge to order the correct tests so that a correct diagnosis can be obtained and the patient sent to a specialist for treatment.
Unfortunately, many doctors make the mistake of assuming that their patient’s symptoms are caused by another disease and don’t order tests which could ultimately diagnose their patient's cancer. When this happens, a patient’s cancer is left to grow unchecked, frequently metastasizing to other parts of the body and putting their life on the line.
The most common cancers that doctors fail to diagnose include:
Symptoms of ovarian cancer can include things like abdominal pain, bloating, cramping, feeling the need to urinate frequently, and back pain, all of which can easily be mistaken for muscle strain, IBS, or a urinary tract infection.
While growths are often easily identified in the breast, many are ignored and diagnosed as a benign calcification or fibroma.
Did you know that nearly 40% of all patients with pancreatic cancer had their gallbladders removed before receiving their cancer diagnosis because the symptoms of these two conditions are so similar?
While this question can’t be answered without first reviewing the case, the following questions may provide you with an indication of whether or not a medical professional who treated you commited medical malpractice:
If you believe that your doctor failed to follow the standard of care, contact our law firm today for a free case evaluation.
Clients often stall before calling our law firm because they are already struggling to pay their medical bills and are afraid they won’t be able to afford an attorney. That’s why our experienced and passionate lawyers work on what is known as a contingency fee.
This means that any fee we collect will be taken directly out of the award or settlement we obtain on your behalf. If we don’t win your case, we don’t get paid. It’s that simple.
See our next article here: https://banvillelaw.com/atv-accident-kills-12-year-old/
