Suing the hospital for telling me I had cancer?

[MoralityPondering]

Can I? Should I? Family and friends are telling me to. I was diagnosed 2 months ago at a private hospital after MRI & biopsy. 3 surgeries later and now last week I've been told it isn't cancer at all. They had it looked at 3 times to decide it wasn't cancer so it doesn't seem to be a straight forward decision. I'm not sure it's the right thing to do anyway. I just feel how I did when I was diagnosed - like my life has been ripped apart again.

Your body has been assaulted, more than once, for no reason.

You need answers, and you deserve them.

I don’t think formal complaints even register. The specialist involved in the shocking treatment we experienced is still practicing. He absolutely shouldn’t be.
@MoralityPondering The solicitor I used was able to get answers that we wouldn’t have got. The files were reviewed by a specialist at another teaching hospital. It wasn’t easy but I’m glad I got those answers. I’m happy to give you the details if you wish to pm

I cannot, absolutely cannot believe people are telling you to just be grateful.

Obviously it's good you don't have cancer.

However, you have suffered the mental trauma of believing you had cancer, massive operations to remove it, physical trauma of the procedures and the risk that is involved in them and the scars etc.
Then you are faced with being told it was all a mistake!

Totally mind boggling that people can't see you have been put through hell and then chucked out the other end!

I think you must absolutely push for more information, talk to solicitors (even if you are simply trying to cover future implant replacement) and seek counselling.

I am so very sorry this has happened to you, I really feel for you.

I have to agree with @ohbygolly. As this is a private hospital and not the NHS, you are now dealing with a scenario that is exactly the same as if a mistake was made in a country where medicine is run for-profit. Instead of having things like PALS and debriefings and investigations into an NHS trust, golly is right that you’ll probably have to sue for answers (and unfortunately that’s happened occasionally even with the NHS), which is what so many people don’t seem to understand.

My heart was breaking when you wrote that you were trying to see your consultant and having a “tough time” with it. I’m sure that’s not an accident on his or her part. They are probably avoiding seeing you, just like they will avoid verbally taking any responsibility for their wrongdoing. I know people who have sued in a situation much like yours (unnecessary surgery with life-long complications) because, in their words, “I just wanted them to admit they were wrong, and they wouldn’t.” And she couldn’t say that sentence without crying.

You have lost your breast. You have lost lymph nodes. You may have some movement difficulty with the arm on that side forever. And it was all unnecessary. You have the right to feel ANYTHING you feel - sad, angry, confused, upset, grief-stricken.

So yes, I would sue. Anyone who gives you some trite shite about how you should just be happy it isn’t cancer and ignore all the rest is being damn insensitive. You have to deal with this every time you take off your shirt for the rest of your life. AND you should definitely have the money to fund the future surgeries you’ll need (replacing the implant in X years, possible scar tissue removal, physio for your arm or possible future lymphedema).

I’m absolutely shocked at how many people voted YABU. I don’t believe people should sue at the drop of a hat, and I even had a mistake during surgery that affected me for years and I didn’t sue (it was an unfortunate mistake, but not really negligence), but this is a completely different level.

From your first post I was going to too into you. "Be grateful" " mistakes happen". Thankfully I read the rest of your posts. You definitely need answers. Why did they do this. Why did the real result take so long.
I am a man so cannot relate to what you feel but my heart goes out to you

This is totally shocking, make sure you sue them I’d even go to the newspapers.
I’ve had breast cancer, mastectomy, lymph nodes removed etc and the whole diagnosis/ops etc and it’s had a huge impact on my mental health and things such as lymphedema which I have constantly, I feel like I’ll never be the same person I once were, I was only 25 at diagnosis with a 9 month old baby. I total understand where you’re coming from some of these comments on here are disturbing and this should of never happened to you. Your tests/results should of been overlooked by other health professionals before giving you that diagnosis, they also have meetings regarding a patients treatment plan before they give it the go ahead, I just don’t understand how this has happened ..
You’ll definitely need counselling/therapy it’s life changing surgery..
Big hugs 💐xx

Suing them for doing their job?

What’s happened to you is appalling, I’m amazed at the people who seem to think you should be grateful, they clearly have no idea how traumatising this must have been and will continue to be.

You made me think of a lady called Carenza Lewis (used to be on Time Team) who was misdiagnosed with cancer and had a mastectomy, then the stress and worry caused her to go on to have the other breast removed to try and give her peace of mind, only then to find out she had never had cancer. The below article is about various people who have sued the NHS after misdiagnosis and mentions her case.

www.theguardian.com/society/2000/oct/31/futureofthenhs.health

@IAmDaveTheSerialShagger

Suing them for doing their job?

Have a think...

Yes I would sue OP.

You were put through all of the risks of surgeries including removal of a body part, the psychological trauma (yours and your family members') of a diagnosis with a serious illness and then just told 'good news it's not cancer'- this is absolutely terrible.

Also like you say- if you don't sue they may well not pay for the reconstruction surgery, which they owe you at the very least + compensation.

Think about the financial cost of ongoing physical & mental rehab. Being disabled (I am) or severely injured is savagely expensive

I can see the rationale for suing
Ultimately you have been harmed physically and mentally from this all.
I think you shd seek the answers to the questions posed here and if you are not happy look to getting some compensation from the hospital. Mistakes happen all the time in medicine it's important that those responsible are open and honest about what has happened and learning occurs to prevent it from happening again. I hope you start to feel stronger soon.

Thank you. I'm crying reading your post. That's exactly it.

I read back this thread and I got angry about what happened to you, and I cried for you,
Then, even though I'm 21 years down the line from my experience of medical negligence, I cried for me too.

What would be the basis of your complaint?

The crux of it is the biopsy, not necessarily the surgeon. The whole surgical pathway happened because of the biopsy result.

If the biopsy was your tissue and it was misinterpreted but within the realm of expected false positive error then it’s a horrible thing, but no one’s “fault”.

It may not have been your biopsy at all, in which case there’s a major fuck up.

Or it may be somewhere in between, where the pathologist was incorrect, and erred more than would be reasonably expected. That will be difficult to get clarification about and it may require external (legal) involvement.

You definitely need to find out what happened, but, if the surgeon acted on what was reasonably thought to be cancer (a positive biopsy result) then it’s not really their “fault”.

What would be the basis of your complaint? Have you read the thread.

Firstly, thank f**k you don't have cancer. This is amazing news! My DM died 11 years ago, only a few weeks after diagnosis, due to mistakes being made. I didn't sue. What would be the point? Won't bring her back.

In your case, firstly, you need to know what happened so you can justify it all in your mind. Secondly, the private hospital need to make sure that any further treatment or surgeries are fully covered, including rehabilitation. This is the least they should do. If they are not willing to agree to this then you have no option but to take legal action.

Our house insurance helped us with our medical negligence claim, ours was the opposite - told the nodule they where 'watching' off previous X-rays had gone and DH didn't have cancer then 6 months later told state 4 terminal cancer and the nodule had grown on the X-ray previously reported clear. DH died in Jan. 21 hard months later.

@MoralityPondering

I was diagnosed with ER/PR positive grade 2 breast cancer after biopsy, mammogram and Contrast MRI. I had a mastectomy with reconstruction and node clearance. After Path report last week it's not cancer. It's a complicated benign mass.

You have been through a terrible trauma and I am so sorry. The only thing I can think to say is that a least you won’t have the worry of future scans and check ups always afraid of reoccurrence or spreading. I can understand you wanting to register the extreme distress and mutilation of your body and I am sure you could get some compensation but do you want the extra stress?

Yanbu

My parent had private surgery a few years back. They paid becuse the NHS wait was very long andthe risk increases the longer left untreated.

Just before due to be discharged after all final checks, they went unconsious. Rush of medical staff sablised the consultant had left for weekend at the point. And rest of day staff were soon heading home. The doctor believed internal bleeding but for 24 hrs the hospital did very little, then transfered to the NHS hospital as the private hospital didnt have the staff or inclination to manage a patient which hadnt gone to plan.
The NHS gave 6 blood tranfusions andfurther surgery was likely. The NHS said this happens so much with private hospital offloading patients to them rather than care for themselves. It was very stressful, as the likelyhood was that the surgery would have failed and the recovery from bloodloss took well over 12 months. The private hospital said they would redo surgery if it failed.
In this instance legal advise said little could be done as the form signed goes over all possible risks and internal bleeding was one of the risks.

In your case, im assuming that the form didnt include a risk of surgery being pointless as no cancer. Good luck xx

I’m so sorry this has happened to you, I don’t ha e any helpful advice but wanted to chime in as another who thinks you have every right to explore legal action and I say that as a healthcare worker. The first step as so many more knowledgable people have said is to get an appointment in which they explain what went wrong. Perhaps record it (with their permission obviously). If this was a case of a borderline diagnosis that’s one thing but they should offer support with counselling etc. But if it’s a true error you have every right to compensation

Also @LavenderLavender if it is one of those incredibly hard to diagnose cases, (it could well be as it had several opinions on the sample & opinions sought from a different hospital in the end), then how do I trust that they know for sure it isn't cancer now?

@MoralityPondering Could you see the NHS-- they could help put your mind at rest. Or some other doctor for a second opinion just to double check (I'm sure it's true that you don't have it, just maybe this could give you some reassurance.)

It does sound like you had a lot of unnecessary surgery etc. I had private treatment for something and my experience was similar in a way. Some of them can be comparatively 'maverick'/loose cannons in what they decide to do, and can end up doing the wrong thing.

I've not read the full thread, but you can also do things like complain to the General Medical Council.

If you see the NHS they might support you in this by saying X, Y, Z shouldn'tve been done. That's what they said to me they would do if I chose to do it (I didn't in the end, partly due to my health etc.)

But really you need professional advice before you do anything at all of course.

OP I am so sorry for what you've been through. Of course you will feel glad that you're not sick. But that doesn't mean you can't be distressed that your trauma was all for nothing.

I actually think you should 100% seek legal advice. If you need ongoing treatment or for example need your implant replaced, you shouldn't have to pay for that out of your own pocket. Think of it not so much as punishing the hospital but rather as making sure you are no further out of pocket or traumatised by their mistake.

I received a payout many years ago and at the time I remember feeing a bit guilty about it. But I have in the years since, spent a lot of money on management of pain related to my original injury and without that payout, I would have struggled to do so.