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Incorrect or inaccurate lung cancer diagnosis can have devastating, and sometimes, life-threatening consequences. Sadly, cancer misdiagnosis or delayed cancer diagnosis happen far more often than we realize, compounding patients’ suffering with mounting expenses and lost treatment opportunities.
If you suspect that you’ve been a victim of lung cancer misdiagnosis, contact Shelsby & Leoni today. Our medical misdiagnosis lawyers can help you understand your legal rights and guide you through a lawsuit.
How Is Lung Cancer Diagnosed?
A lung cancer diagnosis typically starts with a physical exam where your doctor will ask you a series of questions regarding your family’s medical history and lifestyle. If lung cancer is suspected, your doctor may decide to administer diagnostic exams such as X-rays, CT scans, mucus testing, biopsies, or bone scans.
Unfortunately, no medical exam is 100% conclusive, and in some situations, they may misdiagnose the cancer as something else. Medical staff may also be hesitant to administer them, which can lead to late diagnosis.
Symptoms of Lung Cancer
Lung cancer symptoms range considerably depending on the type and stage of the disease. However, a few of the more common symptoms of lung cancer include:
- Chest pain, which may be sharp or dull, or radiate to your back, shoulders, or chest. Oftentimes, the pain may get worse when you cough, take deep breaths, or laugh
- A persistent cough that lasts more than a few weeks
- Changes in your voice, such as hoarseness, wheezing, or raspiness
- Difficulty breathing, especially when moving, walking, or exercising
- Coughing up blood
- Frequent fatigue, dizziness, or headaches
- Anemia
- Unexplained weight loss or loss of appetite
- Bone or joint pain
- Numbness in the extremities
- Jaundice (yellowing of the skin and eyes)
Keep in mind that in some cases, lung cancer may not have any symptoms at all or may be confused with other conditions that have similar symptoms.
How Is Lung Cancer Misdiagnosed?
Lung cancer has some of the highest rates of misdiagnosis, primarily because its symptoms (such as a persistent cough, headache, or wheezing) are often confused with other conditions. Here are a few common conditions that may be lung cancer in disguise:
- Asthma
- COPD
- Bronchitis or pneumonia
- Tuberculosis
- Pulmonary fibrosis
- Pulmonary embolism
- GERD
- Heart failure
Misdiagnosis of cancer may also occur when medical exams produce inaccurate results or if medical imaging technology fails, such as when lung cancer is misdiagnosed as pneumonia. There can also be clerical errors in the paperwork or miscommunications between patients, their doctors, or other medical staff.
How Can a Lawyer Help with a Lung Cancer Misdiagnosis?
A cancer misdiagnosis can lead to dangerous or even fatal consequences for the patient and their family. When a doctor dismisses their patient’s concerns or symptoms, or if their failure to provide attentive care was connected to their cancer becoming more advanced, the patient and their family have the right to file a cancer misdiagnosis lawsuit and pursue damages for their loss and suffering.
To successfully do this, hiring a med mal lawyer with experience in lung cancer misdiagnosis cases is one of the most important decisions you can make. A lawyer can help you file paperwork, investigate your case, and advocate on your behalf during treatment, medical evaluations, and in court.
Wrongful Death
Sadly, some lung cancer misdiagnoses can result in fatalities. If cancer treatment is delayed more than a few weeks (or even less time in some cases), it can advance quickly to the next stage and become fatal. In such cases, their surviving family members have the right to sue for their emotional trauma, funeral expenses, or loss of income through a wrongful death suit.
Damages You Can Seek for a Lung Cancer Misdiagnosis
Damages refer to the misdiagnosis of cancer compensation awarded to individuals in a personal injury suit. They are typically divided into two categories – economic damages and non-economic damages. In cancer misdiagnosis cases, individuals and their family members can make their case and seek both types of damages so that they can receive the resources they need to heal and move on from the event.
Economic Damages
When lung cancer is misdiagnosed, it can result in unnecessary medical expenses, sometimes exceeding hundreds of thousands of dollars. The doctor may administer unnecessary treatments to address what they perceive to be a benign condition. This can cause trauma to the body and leave the cancer to spread in the interim, and the longer the cancer is allowed to spread, the more invasive (and expensive) the eventual treatment may be.
Economic damages are used to address quantifiable financial hardships resulting from the misdiagnosis, such as medical bills that would have been more manageable if the misdiagnosis hadn’t taken place. They can also address a loss of income that may result from an invasive surgery or treatment that could have been avoided but that has now left them unable to work.
Non-Economic Damages
While economic damages refer to hardships that have a quantifiable value, many other types don’t necessarily come with a price tag. When a misdiagnosis results in disfigurement, emotional distress, chronic pain, or a disability, it can prevent a person from socializing, finding work, or finding enjoyment in life.
Unfortunately, many individuals don’t survive the cancer because of the misdiagnosis. Family members who have suffered a loss due to a medical professional’s negligence can seek non-economic damages for their trauma and provide them with mental health resources. They may also seek economic damages for the cost of the funeral, burial, and loss of income.
Lung Cancer Misdiagnosis Lawyer: FAQs
Is Lung Cancer Curable?
Lung cancer is curable, however, as with nearly all types of cancer, early detection increases a person’s rate of survival. Stages I and II have the highest rate of survival, with 60 – 90% during a 5-year period. However, at Stages II and IV, the cancer has moved beyond the lungs, and survival is rare. Because lung cancer is one of the most aggressive forms of cancer and can double in size in a matter of weeks, it’s crucial to seek multiple medical opinions if your symptoms are persistent.
Does Smoking Weed Cause Lung Cancer?
Because legality has only existed for a few years in the US, studies connecting cannabis use and lung cancer are extremely limited. However, some studies strongly suggest that lung cancer can be caused or made worse by smoking or vaping cannabis. What’s more concerning is that many more suggest that cannabis may be more responsible for lung cancer cases than cigarettes, due to the higher levels of tar.
Does Vaping Cause Lung Cancer?
Vaping and e-cigarettes have only been widely consumed for a little over a decade, and medical studies can take much longer to provide conclusive results. That being said, some data suggests that while vaping is generally safer than smoking, it may still have the capability to cause lung cancer. Though vapes and e-cigarettes don’t produce smoke, they are still combustible, and the ingredients and materials that you inhale may cause cancer or other medical conditions.
Was Your Lung Cancer Misdiagnosed? Contact a Lung Cancer Misdiagnosis Attorney Today For Help
A lung cancer misdiagnosis can turn your world upside down. At Shelsby & Leoni, our knowledgeable and compassionate cancer misdiagnosis attorneys will be by your side so you do not have to face the consequences of missed or late diagnosis alone. We will thoroughly investigate your case, work with leading experts to prove negligence, and fight to help you recover compensation for your losses. Contact the lung cancer misdiagnosis attorneys at Shelsby & Leoni to discuss your rights.
