Can You Claim For Pancreatic Cancer Misdiagnosis?

By Jo Anderson. Last Updated 11th July 2023. This guide will explore whether you could have valid grounds to make a pancreatic cancer misdiagnosis medical negligence claim. The NHS explains that cancer develops over time and can spread to other areas of the body. Therefore, if misdiagnosed, the condition could worsen, and the person’s prognosis could suffer.

Medical negligence occurs when a medical professional fails to provide a patient with the correct standard of care and causes them to suffer avoidable harm. This means that a medical professional would breach the duty of care that they owe to their patients.

Pancreatic Cancer Misdiagnosis

Pancreatic cancer misdiagnosis claims specialists

Therefore, if you have suffered avoidable harm as a result of your cancer being misdiagnosed due to a medical professional breaching their duty of care, you may be eligible to make a compensation claim. Continue reading to learn more. You can also get in touch with our team at Accident Claims UK for information and support today. Our advisors can offer you free legal advice regarding your case. If you allow them to evaluate your claim and they discover that you may be eligible to bring forward a medical misdiagnosis claim, they could put you in contact with one of our No Win No Fee solicitors.

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  1. A Guide To Claims For Pancreatic Cancer Misdiagnosis
  2. How Is Pancreatic Cancer Diagnosed?
  3. What Could Cause Pancreatic Cancer Misdiagnosis?
  4. Steps You Could Take After A Pancreatic Cancer Misdiagnosis
  5. Estimated Payouts For Pancreatic Cancer Misdiagnosis
  6. Can I Use A No Win No Fee Solicitor To Make A Medical Negligence Claim?

A Guide To Claims For Pancreatic Cancer Misdiagnosis

Pancreatic cancer is a type of cancer that affects the pancreas. This is an organ that helps you to digest food and create insulin. The symptoms of pancreatic cancer can include a high temperature, loss of appetite, having no energy, and the whites of your eyes or skin turning yellow.

If pancreatic cancer is misdiagnosed, it can delay the time it takes for you to receive the required treatment. This could cause you to suffer from the following harm:

  • Physical and psychological pain and suffering
  • More intensive and invasive cancer treatment
  • A worsened prognosis
  • In severe cases, death

If a medical professional breached their duty to provide the correct standard of care, which led to your misdiagnosis and avoidable harm, you could be eligible to claim compensation. This award would account for the medical negligence. Please contact our team today to see if you meet the eligibility criteria to make a compensation claim.

How Is Pancreatic Cancer Diagnosed?

The diagnosis of pancreatic cancer could require different tests. If you have symptoms of pancreatic cancer, you should seek the attention of a medical professional.

Tests for pancreatic cancer can include:

Carrying out tests is crucial to diagnosing cancer and getting the treatment you require as soon as possible. In the next section, we will explain how a misdiagnosis could occur. To speak to an advisor about your claim, please use the contact details provided.

What Could Cause Pancreatic Cancer Misdiagnosis

Doctors may mistake pancreatic cancer for other medical conditions. This could be caused by a medical professional breaching their duty of care. For example, if a doctor mixes up your test results with those of another patient, it could mean you receive a medical misdiagnosis, leading to you getting the wrong treatment and causing your condition to worsen. In this case, you may be eligible to bring forward a claim.

Below are further examples of how a pancreatic cancer misdiagnosis could occur due to a medical professional breaching their duty of care:

  • After clearly explaining all of your symptoms, your doctor ignores this and sends you away without referring you for any tests.
  • Hospital negligence could occur if a medical professional misreads test results that clearly show pancreatic cancer. Leading to a misdiagnosis and avoidable harm.
  • Your test results come back as inconclusive, and instead of sending you for further testing, your doctor sends you home without taking any further steps.

Please speak to our advisors to find out whether you could have valid grounds to make a medical negligence claim for pancreatic cancer misdiagnosis.

Steps You Could Take After A Pancreatic Cancer Misdiagnosis

If you believe you have a valid claim for a pancreatic cancer misdiagnosis, there are several steps you might wish to take. One of the most important steps is gathering sufficient evidence to prove your claim. The types of evidence that may support your claim could include:

  • Your medical records, showing any diagnosis or treatment you’ve had
  • Results of medical test, such as blood work or X rays/scans
  • Any letters or other correspondence with the medical professionals caring for you
  • Copies of any prescriptions
  • Witness contact details, who could provide a statement about the care you’ve received

In some medical negligence claims, including those for a misdiagnosis of pancreatic cancer, something called the Bolam test may be used to assess the evidence. This involves getting a panel of relevant and similarly medical practitioners to assess whether the standard of care you received was appropriate. They would look at all of the evidence and make a decision as to whether or not a breach of duty has occurred.

Perhaps the most important step you could take is to obtain legal advice. Specialist advisors could assess your eligibility to claim. If you contact our advisors, they could provide such assistance. Furthermore, they could provide you with one of our solicitors, who could help gather evidence and negotiate a compensation settlement for you.

What Is The Limitation Period?

Under the Limitation Act 1980, there is a three-year time limit to begin your medical negligence claim. This time limit begins from the date that medical negligence occurred or the date of knowledge, which is when you became aware of medical negligence in connection with the incident.

There are some exceptions to these time limits. Please speak to our advisors to find out what time limits are applicable to your claim.

Estimated Payouts For Pancreatic Cancer Misdiagnosis

There are up to two potential heads of a successful pancreatic cancer misdiagnosis claim: general and special damages.

Firstly, general damages compensate you for the harm you have suffered due to medical negligence. Solicitors can use the Judicial College Guidelines (JCG), updated in 2022, to help them value general damages payments. Therefore, we have used the JCG for the table of potential compensation amounts below.

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Injury Notes Potential Compensation Figures
Bowels (a) Where there is double incontinence in the form of complete loss of urinary function and control with the total loss of natural bowel function. This will also involve other medical complications. Up to £184,200
Bowels (b) The person will have completely lost all natural bowel function. They will depend on a colostomy. The award will consider the person’s age. Up to £150,110
Bowels (c) Faecal urgency and cases of passive incontinence which persist post surgery. In the region of £79,920
Bowels (d) Impairment of function with temporary colostomy or restriction on diet and employment. £44,590 to £69,730
Lung Disease (a) A young person that has a serious disability. There will be a probability that progressive worsening could lead to premature death. £100,670 to £135,920
Lung Disease (b) Lung cancer which causes the person severe pain and impairs their quality of life and function of the lungs. £70,030 to £97,330
Lung Disease (d) Fairly frequent use of an inhaler required, intolerance of smoky rooms, and where prognosis is uncertain. £31,310 to £54,830
Digestive System (a) Continuing discomfort and pain with severe damage. £43,010 to £61,910

Please be aware that the compensation brackets are a guide.

Estimates Of Special Damages

In addition to a general damages payout, you could also receive an award under special damages. Special damages reimburse you for certain expenses caused by the avoidable harm you have suffered.

Examples of financial losses you could receive include the following:

To support your claim, it is important to provide evidence of monetary losses, such as invoices, travel tickets, payslips and bank records. Please speak to a member of our team to get an estimation of the compensation you could be eligible to receive.

Can I Use A No Win No Fee Solicitor To Make A Medical Negligence Claim?

If you discuss your case with one of our advisors, and they find that you could be eligible to make a medical negligence claim, they may put you in correspondence with one of our No Win No Fee clinical negligence solicitors. By entering into a form of No Win No Fee agreement called a Conditional Fee Agreement (CFA), you will generally benefit from the following:

  • No upfront payments for your solicitor’s services.
  • No ongoing payments for these services.
  • Should your claim be unsuccessful, you will not be asked to make any payments for the services your solicitor provides.
  • Should your claim be successful, a small percentage of the compensation can be deducted by your No Win No Fee solicitor. This is a previously agreed upon success fee, which is capped by law.

To learn more, please speak to a member of our team. To do this, you can:

Related Claims For Misdiagnosed Cancers

You may find further guides from our website helpful in learning more about misdiagnosis claims:

Also, explore these external links for more information:

Thank you for reading our guide to making a medical negligence claim following a pancreatic cancer misdiagnosis.