Misdiagnosis Injuries in Portland

Pursuing Justice for Injured Patients in Oregon

If you have suffered greatly from a misdiagnosis on the part of a medical professional, you do not have to simply accept the consequences-some of which can be major, as you know. Perhaps you were told that you simply had a headache when in fact you were suffering symptoms from a concussion. You later suffered from those symptoms over a long period of time, racking up huge medical bills and putting your life in peril.

At Angel Law, P.C., our personal injury team is familiar with local, state, and federal laws governing diagnoses done by a medical professional, and we will work to help you achieve justice if you have been the victim of a misdiagnosis in a Portland-area medical facility. If you suspect that you have been affected by a misdiagnosis, do not wait to work with a legal professional. Let a malpractice attorney help you determine if you have a case.

Contact us today for your initial case evaluation! Call (503) 862-8666 or email us.

What Is Considered Misdiagnosis?

Doctors do their best to diagnosis a patient's condition, but they do make mistakes. Sometimes those mistakes can simply be a result of human fallibility; other times, however, they can result from a doctor being overly tired due to long hours at work, a desire to receive maximum compensation from a patient, or even a desire to test out a new technique or medicine (for which the physician might receive compensation).

Some common examples of negligent misdiagnosis include:

• Failure to identify signs of cancer
• Opting to skip tests that could knowingly prevent a condition
• Delaying a test or procedure that could have identified an illness or issue
• Incorrectly reading or running a diagnostic test

Cancer Misdiagnoses Run Rampant

The medical journal Cancer has suggested that about 12% of all cancer patients are initially misdiagnosed. Cancer misdiagnosis can be the result of a doctor failing to order the appropriate diagnostic test, failing to properly perform a tissue biopsy, failing to follow up with a patient suspected of having cancer, or failing to refer a patient to a specialist, among others. It can also occur when laboratory test results are misread or when a malignant tumor is misclassified or mis-graded in terms of its aggressiveness.

Tests that doctors can use to increase diagnosis accuracy are:

• Endoscopic ultrasounds
• MRIs
• Blood and urine cytology studies
• Mammograms

Diagnosis Delays Can Be Deadly

When a doctor misdiagnoses cancer, necessary treatment is delayed. By the time an accurate diagnosis is made, cancer may have spread or worsened. In many cases, a delay in correctly diagnosing cancer may be considered medical malpractice because many types of cancer respond especially well to early treatment. Sometimes, the delay in diagnosing cancer means the opportunity for curative treatment may be lost. In other instances, such a medical mistake allows the disease to progress, which may subject a patient to more drastic forms of treatment such as higher doses of chemotherapy or radiation.

Call (503) 862-8666 to Speak with Honest, Caring Lawyers

Let Angel Law, P.C. determine if there was more than human error involved in your misdiagnosis. We are not on a witch hunt for medical professionals, but we are committed to justice for our clients, and we will fight to get the compensation that they deserve. Our Portland malpractice lawyer has gained a reputation for our personalized care for clients, many of whom say that we treat them like a friend.

Angel Law, P.C. will not tolerate injustice in hospitals, and you neither should you. Contact our Portland medical malpractice attorney today to set up a free consultation.