The cervix is a narrow tube that connects the uterus to the vagina. Cervical cancer is a form of cancer that originates in the cervix. It is highly preventable through screenings such as Pap smears, and it is more easily treated if it is diagnosed in the early stages. However, some women skip their Pap screenings or are not advised of their importance. In other cases, doctors or labs fail to properly diagnose cervical cancer based on test results. If you were harmed as a result of a health care provider failing to diagnose, misdiagnosing, or failing to treat your cervical cancer, you should discuss your situation with the Upstate New York cervical cancer lawyers at DeFrancisco & Falgiatano.
Cervical CancerA high percentage of cervical cancers are caused by HPV. It is unusual for a woman under age 20 to receive a cervical cancer diagnosis. Cervical cancer may not have noticeable symptoms in its early stages. However, some women develop symptoms such as changes in menstruation, abnormal vaginal bleeding, pain during sex, and vaginal discharge that includes blood.
When there is a family history of cervical cancer, a doctor may recommend DNA testing. Sometimes cervical cancer is caught in a routine Pap smear. Cells from a woman’s cervix are sent to a pathology lab for examination. The pathology lab sends a report back to the patient’s doctor. If cervical cancer is not caught early and progresses and spreads beyond the cervix and uterus, it is less likely to be treatable. Sometimes doctors do not conduct appropriate screenings for cervical cancer or misdiagnose cervical cancer as another condition. In other cases, cervical cancer is caught but not properly treated.
Liability for Cervical CancerTo show medical malpractice, a cervical cancer attorney in Upstate New York will need to prove a professional standard of care, a departure from the professional standard of care, causation, and damages. A departure from the professional standard of care could involve inadequate reading of a Pap smear, a doctor’s failure to follow up with abnormal test results, relying on a Pap smear to diagnose rather than treating it as a method of screening, failing to do a biopsy, failing to conduct a proper test, and failing to take a proper history. For instance, if your doctor failed to notice abnormalities that existed in your routine Pap smear, and as a result your cervical cancer progressed and spread and became untreatable, the doctor could be held accountable.
The professional standard of care depends on what a reasonably competent doctor in the same specialty and geographic region would have done under the same or similar circumstances. For instance, if a competent doctor in Upstate New York would have biopsied tissue, but your doctor did not, and as a result you were not diagnosed in a timely fashion, we may be able to show a departure from the professional standard of care. Similarly, since some Pap smears return a false negative in spite of the presence of precancerous or cancerous cells in the cervix, a reasonably prudent general practitioner in Upstate New York may have performed further testing when there was a high risk of cervical cancer in your case. If your doctor did not do what a reasonably prudent Upstate New York doctor in the same specialty would have done, our Upstate New York cervical cancer attorneys can hold the doctor liable for the harm that results.
Cervical cancer can be treated through chemotherapy, radiation, or a hysterectomy.
DamagesDamages that may be recovered if liability is successfully established include economic and non-economic losses. Economic losses can include medical bills and lost income. Non-economic losses can include loss of consortium, mental anguish, pain and suffering, and loss of enjoyment of life. If a loved one died as a result of her health care provider’s failure to diagnose or treat cervical cancer, it may be possible to bring a wrongful death lawsuit to recover damages.
Retain Seasoned Counsel for Your Medical Malpractice LawsuitPeople who were harmed because of a doctor’s failure to diagnose or treat cervical cancer may be able to sue for damages in court. However, medical malpractice lawsuits can be complicated. If you believe that you suffered from medical malpractice regarding cervical cancer, you should retain the seasoned Upstate New York attorneys at DeFrancisco & Falgiatano. We represent injured cervical cancer patients in Syracuse, Rochester, Oswego, Lyons, Oneida, Cooperstown, Binghamton, Auburn, Wampsville, Canandaigua, Ithaca, Watertown, Elmira, Utica, Lowville, and Herkimer. Call DeFrancisco & Falgiatano at 833-200-2000 or use our online form to discuss your case with a cervical cancer lawyer in Upstate New York.