Practice area
Misdiagnosis and delayed diagnosis
Doctors do not have to be right every time. They do have to be careful. When a diagnosis was missed because of a skipped test, a misread scan or a result no one followed up, and the delay changed what happened to you, there may be a claim.
What this can look like
- A cancer missed on a scan, mammogram or biopsy
- A stroke or heart attack sent home from the emergency room
- Sepsis or a serious infection not recognised in time
- An abnormal test result that was never followed up
- Appendicitis, meningitis or an ectopic pregnancy missed
- A referral to a specialist that was never made or never tracked
Did the delay change the outcome?
This is the hardest question in most misdiagnosis cases, and the one we answer first. Our reviewing specialists rebuild the timeline like this.
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First symptoms
What you reported, and when. Your own notes and messages help here.
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The visit where it was missed
What was examined, what was ordered, and what a careful doctor would have done.
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The diagnosis
When and how the condition was finally found, and how far it had progressed.
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The difference
What treatment and outcome would most likely have looked like if it had been found at the first visit.
If the honest answer to the last row is "about the same", we will tell you, even if the first visit was poorly handled.
What the law asks you to show
All four must be true. Most cases are decided by the third one.
- 1.Duty
- A doctor, radiologist, lab or hospital was responsible for your diagnosis or for following up a result.
- 2.Breach
- A physician in the same field would say a careful doctor would have ordered the test, read the scan correctly or acted on the result.
- 3.Causation
- The delay changed the outcome: the illness spread, treatment became harder, or a chance of recovery was lost.
- 4.Harm
- The delay led to more invasive treatment, lasting injury, a shorter life expectancy or a death.
Who reviews it
Independent experts who do not work with the providers involved. We pay their fees.
- A physician in the same field as the doctor who missed it, such as emergency medicine or radiology
- A specialist who treats the condition, such as an oncologist or neurologist, to explain what earlier diagnosis would have changed
Records that help
You do not need these before you call. With your permission, we request them.
- Emergency room and clinic visit notes
- Imaging reports, and the images themselves
- Lab and pathology results with their dates
- Referral letters and patient portal messages
- Notes from the visit where the diagnosis was finally made
Deadlines can be short
Many states start the deadline when the missed diagnosis was discovered, or should have been. That date is often argued about, so do not wait to find out which date applies. Rules differ by state.
Deadlines, explainedQuestions we hear
My doctor ordered tests and still missed it. Is that malpractice?
Not necessarily. If the tests were reasonable and the results were read correctly, a missed diagnosis can happen without negligence. The question is whether a careful doctor would have done something different.
Does it matter how long the delay was?
What matters is what the delay changed. A short delay can matter a great deal with a stroke or sepsis. A long delay may change little with a slow-growing condition.
Other practice areas
Tell us what happened. We will tell you the truth about it.
A free, confidential review by our nurse and an independent physician. If we do not believe it was malpractice, we will say so and explain why.