Thyroid Cancer Misdiagnosis Compensation Claims

This guide will explain when you might be eligible to claim compensation following a thyroid cancer misdiagnosis. All medically trained professionals must provide their patients with the correct level of care. If they fail to do so and you suffer harm as a result of their negligence, you could seek compensation.

thyroid cancer misdiagnosis

Thyroid cancer misdiagnosis claims guide

In this guide, we have provided examples of when a medical professional’s negligence could lead to a misdiagnosis. This should help you understand whether you hold a valid claim.

Additionally, we have explored how settlements following a successful medical negligence claim are calculated and what they may comprise.  This could help you understand how much your medical negligence claim could be worth.

We understand the medical negligence claims process can seem daunting. However, our guide has explored the steps you could take after having your cancer misdiagnosed. For instance, the evidence you could gather to support your claim and how seeking legal advice could benefit you.

Please get in touch with our team of advisors for more information. You can contact us by:

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What Is A Thyroid Cancer Misdiagnosis?

Thyroid cancer is a rare form of cancer affecting the small gland which sits at the base of the neck and produces hormones. According to the NHS, women are 2-3 times more likely to develop it than men.

In order to diagnose thyroid cancer correctly, you may have to undergo certain tests and your doctor may refer you to a hospital specialist. If your doctor or another medical professional failed to follow the correct procedure for diagnosing based on your symptoms this could lead to a misdiagnosis.

For instance, you may have visited your doctor after exhibiting clear signs and symptoms linking to thyroid cancer. However, due to the doctor not listening to your concerns the doctor failed to send you for further tests. As a result, your thyroid cancer may have progressed further due to a misdiagnosis and delayed treatment.

In cases where you have experienced harm as a result of your doctor’s negligence, you may be able to claim.

To learn more about whether you’re eligible to make a thyroid cancer misdiagnosis claim, get in touch on the number above.

Thyroid Cancer Symptoms

According to the NHS, thyroid cancer symptoms can include:

  • A lump in the front of your neck
  • Swollen glands in the neck
  • A sore throat that doesn’t improve
  • Neck pain
  • Difficulty swallowing and breathing

If you have experienced any symptoms, please ensure you seek medical attention from a medically trained professional.

Rates Of Thyroid Cancer

We have used statistics from Cancer Research UK to give an insight into the prevalence of thyroid cancer in the UK. According to their research, there were:

  • 3,865 new cases between 2016-2018
  • 405 deaths between 2017-2019

Additionally, the statistics showed that 9% of thyroid cancer cases are preventable.

How Can Doctors Misdiagnose Thyroid Cancer?

There are various ways a medical professional could misdiagnose thyroid cancer and in turn this could lead to delayed treatment of cancer symptoms. Examples include:

  • Failure to carry out the correct tests: You may have visited your doctor after experiencing symptoms of a thyroid condition. However, your doctor may have failed to carry out correct diagnostic tests to rule out thyroid cancer.
  • Failure to send a patient for an urgent referral: Your doctor may have received your test results back but failed to send you for an urgent referral for further testing to correctly diagnose you.
  • Admin errors: You may have been referred for tests at a hospital because of suspected thyroid cancer. However, there may have been an admin error at the hospital resulting in your doctor receiving someone else’s test results. As a result, you may have been misdiagnosed leading to your cancer progressing further.
  • Misinterpreting test results: A doctor may have failed to correctly interpret the test results leading them to diagnose you with a different condition.

If medical negligence has resulted in you receiving a thyroid cancer misdiagnosis, call our team. They can assess whether you’re eligible to make a medical negligence claim. Alternatively, continue reading to understand when you could seek compensation.

When Could You Claim After A Thyroid Cancer Misdiagnosis?

To claim a medical misdiagnosis payout, you need to provide proof of medical negligence taking place. This involves a medically trained professional failing to meet the correct standard of care causing you to experience additional or avoidable harm.

In order to prove medical negligence caused you to sustain harm, you could gather evidence such as medical records. This could include hospital or doctor reports detailing the treatment and diagnosis you received.

It could also include an independent medical report produced from an appointment that you may need to attend as part of the claims process. This report could provide additional details on the extent of the harm you experienced.

A solicitor from our panel could arrange for you to attend this appointment as part of the services they offer. To find out whether a solicitor from our panel could represent your thyroid cancer misdiagnosis claim, get in touch on the number above.

Thyroid Cancer Misdiagnosis Compensation Settlements

Following a successful thyroid cancer misdiagnosis claim, you may receive up to two heads of claim in your settlement. These include:

  • General damages: This head of claim takes into account the pain and suffering you have experienced as a result of the medical negligence. It also accounts for how badly your quality of life has been affected.
  • Special damages: This head of claim accounts for the financial losses and costs associated with the harm you sustained. For example, if you needed to pay for prescriptions, you could claim back the cost of them under special damages. However, you must prove any losses you claim back with evidence, such as receipts.

Legal professionals can use guidelines published by the Judicial College to help them value the general damages head of claim. The guidelines include a list of different injuries with a corresponding bracket compensation amount. We have included figures from the sixteenth edition of the guidelines in the table below. This edition was published in April 2022.

Type of HarmCompensation BracketAdditional Information
Severe psychiatric injury (a)£54,830 to £115,730The person will experience issues with various areas of their life and will have a very poor prognosis.
Moderately severe psychiatric injury (b)£19,070 to £54,830The person will still experience significant issues with aspects of their life but will have a better prognosis than in severe cases.
Chest injuries (a)£100,670 to £150,110Cases in this bracket include where one lung has been completely removed.
Lung disease (b)£70,030 to £97,330Cancer of the lungs which causes severe pain and function impairment.
Neck Moderate (iii)£7,890 to £13,740
Accelerated and/or exacerbated a pre-existing condition
Neck Moderate (ii)£13,740 to £24,990
Recurring pain, stiffness or discomfort
Neck Moderate (i)£24,990 to £38,490
Pre-existing degenerative changes or where symptoms have been accelerated

As there are several factors taken into consideration when valuing the general damages head of claim, you should only use these figures as a guide.

For more information on compensation for a misdiagnosis of cancer, get in touch on the number above. Our team can provide a free estimation of what your thyroid cancer misdiagnosis claim could be worth.

Contact Us To Claim After The Misdiagnosis Of Thyroid Cancer

You may wish to consider hiring a No Win No Fee solicitor from our panel to represent your claim under a Conditional Fee Agreement (CFA). This can provide you with a way to fund legal representation without paying upfront costs for your solicitors services.

There are other benefits of funding your solicitor’s service under a CFA, such as not having to pay your solicitor for their service if your claim has an unsuccessful outcome.

If your claim succeeds, you will be charged a success fee from your compensation. This fee is taken as a percentage that is subject to a legal cap. You can find additional details about the fee in the agreement you sign prior to your claim proceeding.

To begin your claim with an experienced medical negligence solicitor from our panel, please contact us by:

Cancer Compensation Claim Resources

Please find some additional resources that you may find helpful below.

Other Misdiagnosis Claims

We hope this guide on making a thyroid cancer misdiagnosis claim has helped. If you need any other information, call our team on the number above.