An oesophageal cancer misdiagnosis can have serious and lasting effects on your quality of life. According to Cancer Research UK, oesophageal cancer accounted for around 2% of all reported cancer cases in the UK between 2016-2018.
In this guide, we will explain when you could claim compensation for the misdiagnosis of cancer. We will also discuss how negligent cancer misdiagnosis can occur and how evidence can help support your claim. Following this, we will discuss potential compensation awards in medical negligence claims and how solicitors, judges, and other legal professionals calculate these amounts.
Our team of advisors can help if you have any further questions regarding the claims process. Through a free consultation, they can offer free legal advice and can help you identify whether you are eligible to claim. To get started:
- Call on 0800 652 3087
- Start your claim online
- Use the live chat feature for instant support
Jump To A Section
- Oesophageal Cancer Misdiagnosis Claims Explained
- Why Does Oesophageal Cancer Get Misdiagnosed?
- Proving A Doctor Acted Negligently
- What Could I Be Entitled To Claim?
- Talk To Medical Negligence Assist About Oesophageal Cancer Misdiagnosis Claims
- Learn More About Oesophageal Cancer Misdiagnosis Claims
Oesophageal Cancer Misdiagnosis Claims Explained
You may be interested in whether you could claim compensation if you have suffered due to an oesophageal cancer misdiagnosis. However, not all cases of misdiagnosis will result in a valid claim.
In order to form the basis of a valid claim, you must be able to prove that your misdiagnosis was a result of negligence. Negligence occurs when:
- A medical professional owes you a duty of care
- They breached this duty
- This caused you to suffer unnecessary harm
All medical professionals owe a duty of care to their patients. To fulfil this duty, their care must not fall below a minimum standard. If your cancer is misdiagnosed because the care you received did not meet the accepted standard and this caused you harm, then you may be able to claim.
Is There A Time Limit For Your Clinical Negligence Claim?
Under the Limitation Act 1980, the medical negligence time limit for starting a claim is three years. This can begin on the date of your misdiagnosis or when you connect your misdiagnosis with negligence.
However, there are some exceptions to this limit. For example:
- For those under the age of eighteen, the time limit freezes until their eighteenth birthday, at which point it reinstates and ends on their twenty-first birthday
- The time limit is suspended for those who do not have the mental capacity to claim for themselves. If the capacity to claim is recovered, the time limit begins for them to be able to make their own claim
In both cases, a litigation friend can claim on your behalf at any point during the suspended time limit. Contact our advisors to learn more about this and the oesophageal cancer misdiagnosis claims process.
Why Does Oesophageal Cancer Get Misdiagnosed?
Misdiagnosis can happen in many ways. However, in order to form the basis of a valid claim, your misdiagnosis must be a result of negligence. In some cases, misdiagnosis cannot be avoided by the right standard of care being provided. For example, you might not have some of the main symptoms of oesophageal cancer, meaning that your doctor diagnoses you with a different condition based on the
Some examples of how :
- If your doctor or GP fails to refer you for tests, such as blood testing, after showing symptoms of oesophageal cancer
- A medical professional misreads test results that clearly show oesophageal cancer and comes to a different diagnosis
- Test samples being mislabeled, which results in you receiving another person’s diagnosis
To find out if you could claim for negligent oesophageal cancer misdiagnosis, get in touch with our team today.
Proving A Doctor Acted Negligently
It’s important to provide evidence that the medical professional treating you acted negligently if you want to claim for oesophageal cancer misdiagnosis. One way of doing this is by collecting evidence; for example, you could:
- Request your medical records: Your medical records will detail the treatment you receive. As such, they could be used to prove how your quality of life could be affected by your misdiagnosis.
- Gather witness contact details: Taking the contact details of potential witnesses, such as anyone who attended your appointment with you, means that a solicitor can take their statements at a later date.
- Keep a symptoms diary: A symptoms diary documents how the misdiagnosis affects your health.
You can collect this evidence yourself, or a solicitor can help you. To learn how a solicitor from our panel could help you with your negligent oesophageal cancer misdiagnosis claim, get in touch today.
What Could I Be Entitled To Claim?
If you successfully sue for the misdiagnosis of cancer, you can receive up to two heads of claim. The first of these is general damages. General damages cover the harm that you sustain because of the negligent misdiagnosis. For example, if the delayed diagnosis causes your cancer to spread, worsening your symptoms, this could be covered by general damages. Oesophageal cancer, if untreated, can spread to the stomach, liver, brain and lungs.
The Judicial College Guidelines (JCG) are often referred to when calculating general damages awards. This is because the JCG sets out guideline settlement amounts in relation to a number of injuries and illnesses. The table below illustrates some examples of these guidelines, but please note that the amounts shown are not guaranteed.
Injury | Compensation Bracket | Notes |
---|---|---|
Moderately Severe Brain Damage (b) | £219,070 to £282,010 | There is a substantial dependence on the care of others in this bracket due to a severe physical or intellectual disability. |
Moderate Brain Damage (c) (ii) | £90,720 to £150,110 | Employability is reduced or removed entirely due to a moderate or modest intellectual disability. |
(a) Lung Disease | £100,670 to £135,920 | There is a probability of premature death in this bracket following severe disability in a young person. |
(b) Lung Disease | £70,030 to £97,330 | This bracket focuses typically on older people with significant levels of pain and impairment as a result of lung cancer. |
(c) Lung Disease | £31,310 to £54,830 | The prognosis in this bracket is uncertain, and the claimant suffers from breathing difficulties and needs to use an inhaler fairly frequently. |
(E) Mental Anguish | £4,670 | Fear of impending death or of life expectancy being reduced. |
Further Information On Special Damages
Special damages are the second head of claim that you could receive. This head addresses the financial losses that you suffer because of your misdiagnosis. For example, under special damages, you could recoup the cost of:
- Travel to and from hospital appointments
- Home nursing care
- Hospice care
- Domestic help
In order to claim under this head, you may need to provide evidence of your losses. This can come in the form of bills, receipts, and invoices, so it can be a good idea to retain any of these documents.
To learn more about claiming medical negligence compensation following a negligent oesophageal cancer misdiagnosis, get in touch with our team of advisors.
Talk To Medical Negligence Assist About Oesophageal Cancer Misdiagnosis Claims
Our panel of medical negligence solicitors can offer their services through a kind of No Win No Fee arrangement called a Conditional Fee Agreement (CFA). Entering into a CFA generally means that you do not need to pay your solicitor any upfront fees to start working on your claim, nor do they require ongoing fees as your case progresses.
Generally, the only fee you need to pay to your solicitor with this agreement in place is a success fee if you’re awarded compensation. This is a small percentage of your compensation that your solicitor takes directly from your award. However, the percentage that they can deduct is legally limited, which means you keep the majority of your settlement. If your claim doesn’t succeed, then you won’t pay this fee.
Speak To An Expert
Our advisors are here to help with your oesophageal cancer misdiagnosis claim. Get in touch today to start your free consultation and find out whether you could work with a solicitor from our panel:
- Call on 0800 652 3087
- Start your claim online
- Use the live chat feature for instant support
Learn More About Oesophageal Cancer Misdiagnosis Claims
For more helpful articles on cancer misdiagnosis, we recommend:
- Claiming for the misdiagnosis of ovarian cancer
- Failure to treat breast cancer compensation claims
- A guide to claiming for a skin cancer misdiagnosis
Or, to access more helpful resources:
Contact our team today to start your oesophageal cancer misdiagnosis claim.
Guide by Cat
Edited by Fern