If you have suffered a delayed cancer diagnosis which has led to further health problems, you may be entitled to make a GP negligence claim for compensation.
The case of Stephen Sutton has highlighted the fact that many GPs are failing to correctly diagnose bowel cancer in younger patients. Such a highly publicised case should help other younger bowel cancer suffers, however the UK remains far behind Europe in terms of cancer survival rates.
If you have received sub-standard care from a GP call our team for legal advice.
Many GPs continue to mis-diagnose younger patients symptoms in the mistaken belief that this type of cancer only affects older people.
Doctors seeing younger patients should take symptoms such as:
- blood in the faeces.
- a change in bowel movements.
- exhaustion.
- unexplained weight loss .
as signs of a serious problem which needs further investigation.
All too often because of a patient's young age symptoms are incorrectly attributed to illnesses such as IBS.
At Imperium Law we have solicitors who specialise in GP claims.
According to Bowel Cancer UK, many of the younger patients who contact them express frustration at not being diagnosed at an early stage.
Due to the assumption that younger people don't get bowel cancer, they are often diagnosed at a more advance stage which severely affects the prognosis. Delayed cancer diagnosis can be a death sentence as delayed treatment can lead to the cancer developing to an in-operable level.
We can represent you on a 'No Win-No Fee' basis, and so there is no need to worry about paying our costs.
Individuals under 40 are often misdiagnosed because their symptoms are attributed to something else such, and months can pass before they are finally diagnosed
For bowel cancer suffers the prognosis is good and the survival rate high if the disease is caught at an early stage. If your doctor has failed to diagnose your cancer you are entitled to make a negligence claim.
Research shows that 93% of patients who are found to have a small bowel tumour which is diagnosed at an early stage go on to live for five years or more.
However under 10% of cases are diagnosed early, the majority are diagnosed at stage 3 and the overall 5 year bowel cancer survival rate at this stage is a much lower 54%.
If you or a loved one has suffered because of a cancer misdiagnosis you are entitled to make a GP negligence claim.
By making a claim you can:
- highlight the failings of a healthcare professional.
- seek compensation for your pain, suffering, loss of earnings and further medical care.
For no-obligation legal advice call our specialist medical negligence team free on 0800 633 5730.