If your cancer has recently been misdiagnosed and you are wondering whether you have an eligible medical negligence claim, you may also be asking, ”What is the average payout for a cancer misdiagnosis?”. Read through our guide to learn about making a medical negligence claim and how a medical negligence claim cancer misdiagnosis payout is calculated.
To have an eligible negligent misdiagnosis claim, the misdiagnosis will need to have happened because a healthcare provider or medical professional breached the duty of care that they owed to you. We discuss this when outlining the eligibility criteria for cancer misdiagnosis claims and we also provide examples of how medical professionals could fail to give the correct standard of care.
As the guide goes on, you can learn how to prove medical negligence with relevant evidence. Finally, we explain how our No Win No Fee solicitors help claimants seek compensation for a valid medical negligence claim.
Call today for free legal advice and learn whether our cancer misdiagnosis solicitors could take a look at your claim. Choose any of the below to get started:
- Call 0800 073 8804.
- Use our ‘claim online’ form.
- Talk to an advisor through the live chat option below.
A Guide To What Is The Average Payout For Cancer Misdiagnosis
Select A Section
- Is There An Average Payout For Cancer Misdiagnosis?
- Who Could Claim For Cancer Misdiagnosis?
- What Are Cancer Misdiagnosis Claims?
- Proving Medical Negligence
- Begin Your Cancer Misdiagnosis Claim With A No Win No Fee Solicitor
- Find Out More About Cancer Misdiagnosis Claims
Is There An Average Payout For Cancer Misdiagnosis?
When making a cancer misdiagnosis claim, you may be interested to know if there is an average payout for cancer misdiagnosis claims. However, although an average could be worked out, because each claim is judged individually on unique circumstances knowing the average would not aid you in any way. However, the settlement for a successful medical negligence claim is formed of up to two parts, or heads.
One such head of claim for medical negligence compensation looks to compensate for physical pain and emotional distress caused by negligent medical care. This is referred to as general damages.
Those calculating injuries for the general damages element of a cancer misdiagnosis settlement might turn to medical evidence for support. They may also look at the guideline compensation brackets found in the Judicial College Guidelines, or JCG.
Compensation Table
The table you can see below uses guideline figures from the JCG. Please note that the top entry is, however, not taken from the JCG. This table should only be used as a guide.
| INJURY | SEVERITY | COMPENSATION | NOTES |
|---|---|---|---|
| Multiple Severe Injuries Plus Special Damages | Serious | Up to £1,000,000+ | Compensation for numerous severe injuries brought on by negligent medical care. The payout also accounts for a loss of earnings and other expenses. |
| Brain and Head | Very Severe | £282,010 to £403,990 | There is little meaningful response to environment, if any, and the affected person needs full-time nursing care. Life expectancy and the level of physical limitation are among the factors affecting the award given. |
| Moderately Severe | £219,070 to £282,010 | The affected person is very seriously disabled. This disability may be physical – for example, limb paralysis – or cognitive. There is a substantial dependence on others as well as on constant professional and other care. | |
| Kidney | Loss of Both Kidneys | £169,400 to £210,400 | Either the loss of two kidneys, or permanent and serious damage to both. |
| Bladder | Cases Involving Double Incontinence | Up to £184,200 | Total loss of natural bowel function and complete loss of urinary function and control. Cases in this bracket will also see further medical complications. |
| Chest | Removal of one lung and/or serious heart damage. | £100,670 to £150,110 | With serious and prolonged pain and suffering and permanent significant scarring. |
| Traumatic Injury | £65,740 to £100,670 | An injury to the chest, lung(s) and/or heart that is considered traumatic. It causes permanent damage, impaired function and physical disability. As a result, life expectancy is reduced. | |
| Bowels | Total Loss of Natural Function | Up to £150,110 | The loss of function may also involve a need for colostomy, dependent on the affected person’s age. |
| Digestive System | Illness/Damage Resulting From Non-Traumatic Injury (i) | £38,430 to £52,500 | Severe toxicosis leads to serious acute pain and vomiting. The affected person also experiences diarrhoea and fever. They require hospital admission for some days or weeks. |
| Scarring to Other Parts of the Body | Single Disfiguring Scar | £7,830 to £22,730 | If not a single disfiguring scar, then a number of noticeable scars on the leg(s), arm(s), hand(s), back or chest. |
Special Damages
General damages are certain to appear in a payout after a successful medical negligence compensation claim. However, special damages are only a potential second head of claim. Just like in personal injury claims, you can seek special damages to cover financial loss. In a medical negligence claim, this financial loss must come as a direct result of a medical professional causing avoidable harm through substandard care.
With that in mind, keep any payslips, receipts or statements that can prove expenses or reduced income for your medical negligence claim. For example, you may be able to use this evidence to seek compensation for:
- A loss of earnings if you are unable to work while ill or injured.
- Necessary medical costs.
- Travel fees.
- Domestic care expenses.
Call today to learn more about cancer misdiagnosis compensation amounts and to ask how much cancer misdiagnosis compensation you could claim. You could be connected to our medical negligence team.
Who Could Claim For Cancer Misdiagnosis?
GPs, doctors and specialists like oncologists are all medical professionals who could be responsible for identifying and diagnosing cancer. Regardless of whether they work for the NHS or a private service, all medical professionals owe their patients a duty of care. This duty requires them to give all patients the correct standard of care.
Misdiagnosis does not necessarily mean the duty of care has been breached. However, if a cancer misdiagnosis error happens because of negligent medical treatment, the professional or healthcare provider could be liable for any unnecessary harm the patient experiences that could have been prevented with a correct diagnosis. If it’s left unchecked, cancer can spread and even lead to premature death, so a diagnosis error can be particularly damaging.
You could have grounds to seek medical negligence compensation if you can show that:
- A medical professional owed you a duty of care.
- They failed to provide the correct standard of care, breaching their duty.
- Because of that breach, you suffered avoidable harm.
Limitation Periods
A cancer misdiagnosis claim must start in time to be valid. The Limitation Act 1980 sets out a three-year time limit for starting a claim for medical negligence. The three years could begin either from the negligent care occurring, or from when you learn that a breached duty of care can be linked to avoidable harm.
In certain cases, an exception might be made to this legal time limit. For example, people without the mental capacity to start legal action will have a different time period in which to claim.
If you have any questions about medical negligence claims, their eligibility criteria, and how long you have to claim for cancer misdiagnosis, just call the number above. Our medical negligence team offer free advice that’s available around the clock.
Time Limits To Claim For Negligent Diagnosis
What Are Cancer Misdiagnosis Claims?
These examples highlight clinical negligence and how a negligent misdiagnosis could lead to avoidable cancer complications.
- A GP fails to identify the clear symptoms of prostate cancer and diagnoses the patient with a UTI. Due to a lack of timely cancer treatment, it spreads to other organs.
- A pancreatic cancer patient receives a delayed cancer diagnosis because a specialist misplaced their results and did not find them until a GP chased them up. The delay meant the cancer worsened, and the patient was untreatable.
- While in a hospital, a patient is wrongly diagnosed because a doctor confused their medical records with someone else’s. By the time they finally received a bowel cancer diagnosis, the patient had to have their whole bowels removed.
- A doctor fails to diagnose a patient with breast cancer because they misread the mammogram results. Due to the lack of treatment, a surgeon has no choice but to remove the breast, leaving visible scars that affect the patient’s mental health.
Get in touch through the number above to discuss your potential cancer misdiagnosis compensation claim. Our medical negligence team can answer questions about the average payout for cancer misdiagnosis and offer free advice about claiming for clinical negligence.
Proving Medical Negligence
You must prove your cancer diagnosis was missed, incorrect or delayed because of a medical professional’s breached duty of care. To help with this effort, you could collect, for example:
- Evidence of a medical professional having you as a patient. This helps to establish that they owed you a duty of care.
- Proof of the medical treatment you received. You have the right to request a copy of your medical records from your healthcare provider. Medical records can also show the treatment you had to receive as a result of substandard medical care.
- Witness contact details.
- Proof of any financial loss caused by negligence, in case you seek special damages.
Organising an independent medical assessment during a claim is one of the many tasks a solicitor can carry out for you. The Bolam Test may also be arranged where relevantly trained professionals assess the misdiagnosis of your cancer and judge whether the care met the correct standard or not.
Just give us a call and ask for free guidance if you want to learn more about how to prove medical negligence and how a solicitor can help.
Gather Evidence For A Medical Negligence Claim
Begin Your Cancer Misdiagnosis Claim With A No Win No Fee Solicitor
Having professional legal representation may be exactly what you need to claim compensation, especially if you are being treated for, or recovering from, cancer. Our medical negligence solicitors use their combined years of experience to help claimants throughout the medical negligence claims process.
If one of our solicitors agrees to take on your case, you would be asked to sign a Conditional Fee Agreement. This is a form of No Win No Fee deal that means you do not pay upfront or during the case for the solicitor’s work. It also means no fee for their services if the claim fails.
Winning means the solicitor takes a success fee, but this is a small percentage of the compensation you receive. Because of a legal cap set out by The Conditional Fee Agreements Order 2013, you are assured of having the majority of a payout set aside for you.
No Win No Fee Medical Negligence Solicitors
Contact Us
Please call if you have any questions related to the average payout for a cancer misdiagnosis, or cancer misdiagnosis compensation more generally. Our medical negligence team of advisors can share guidance and carry out a free claim assessment that will help you see if you have reasonable grounds to seek compensation. If you have a case, you could be connected to a specialist medical negligence solicitor.
There’s no need to wait, as our service is available 24/7. Get started by either:
- Calling 0800 073 8804.
- Asking about making a claim online and we’ll call you.
- Using the live chat pop-up on this page.
Find Out More About Cancer Misdiagnosis Claims
Here are some further guides to making medical negligence claims:
- This lung cancer misdiagnosis guide explains when you can claim for harm caused by negligence.
- How to claim for head and neck cancer misdiagnosis with the help of a No Win No Fee solicitor.
- Find out if you can also claim for being misdiagnosed by video examination.
Additionally, these resources could be helpful:
- An NHS directory for cancer information and support.
- Government advice on claiming Statutory Sick Pay from your employer.
- The General Medical Council explains its professional standards for doctors.
Thank you for reading our guide on whether there is an average payout for a cancer misdiagnosis claim. If you want any support, then just give us a call or reach out online and an advisor could connect you to our medical negligence team.
