Can You Claim For Leukaemia Misdiagnosis?

A leukaemia misdiagnosis may have meant that your condition has deteriorated and spread to other parts of the body. Because of this, you may be wondering if you are eligible to claim compensation. Leukaemia is a type of cancer affecting white blood cells and often requires immediate treatment. Without this treatment, the condition could develop, and this may mean more invasive treatment.

Leukaemia Misdiagnosis

Leukaemia Misdiagnosis – Medical Negligence Claims Guide

In this guide, we will discuss when you could claim compensation for a leukaemia misdiagnosis. We will also discuss clinical negligence and the duty of care that all medical professionals owe their patients. Following this, we will touch on compensation in medical negligence claims, and how solicitors and other legal professionals calculate settlement awards.

Our advisors can answer any more questions you might have about the medical negligence claims process. Through a free consultation, they can evaluate your potential claim and offer free legal advice. To get in touch:

Choose A Topic 

  1. Can You Claim For The Misdiagnosis Of Leukaemia?
  2. Proving Causation In Medical Negligence Claims
  3. Estimating Settlements In Leukaemia Misdiagnosis Claims
  4. No Win No Fee Leukaemia Misdiagnosis Claims
  5. Find Out More About The Medical Misdiagnosis Claims Process

Can You Claim For The Misdiagnosis Of Leukaemia? 

If a leukaemia misdiagnosis has meant that you will suffer more than you needed to had the diagnosis happened at the correct time, you may be curious as to whether you can claim compensation for the avoidable harm you have now experienced. Not all misdiagnoses will mean that a medical negligence claim is eligible. In order to have a valid claim for a leukaemia misdiagnosis, the misdiagnosis must have resulted from negligence.

In order to make a valid medical negligence claim, there has to be proof that:

  • A medical professional owed you a duty of care
  • This duty was not fulfilled
  • You were harmed because of this breach

Any medical professional that treats you owes you a duty of care. This means that the treatment you receive has to meet the correct standard to prevent any unnecessary harm.

If the medical professional treating you does not meet this minimum standard of care and misdiagnoses you as a result, then you could be eligible to make a compensation claim.

How Long After Leukaemia Misdiagnosis Could You Claim? 

Under the Limitation Act 1980. claims for personal injury or medical negligence must be started within a specific time frame. When this does not happen, the claim will become statute-barred. In general, proceedings must be initiated within 3 years of the medical negligence taking place. As it is not always obvious whether the harm you have suffered is due to negligent treatment the three-year time limit can also start from the date of knowledge.

There are exceptions to this for those who are under the age of 18. You will have three years from when you turn 18 to begin the medical negligence claim if a litigation friend has not already started the claim on your behalf.

For those lacking the mental capacity to claim, the time limit is frozen. Again a court-appointed litigation friend can claim on your behalf during the suspended time limit. If you regain enough capacity to begin your claim, the time limit will start from the recovery date.

To find out if you are within the time limit to make a claim for leukaemia misdiagnosis, contact our team today.

Proving Causation In Medical Negligence Claims

When making a medical negligence claim, the onus will be on you as the claimant to prove firstly how the practitioner breached the duty of the care they owed you and how this resulted in you suffering unnecessarily. When both of these areas are proven, this is what is called medical negligence. One way of achieving this is by collecting evidence, such as:

  • Medical records, hospital charts, or other forms of medical documentation that detail the treatment you received and the actions of the medical professional treating you.
  • The contact details of witnesses, for example, someone who came with you for your appointment. This allows a professional to take their statement at a later date.
  • A symptoms diary that records how the misdiagnosis has affected you, for example, through an exacerbation of your symptoms.

Your case may also be put to the Bolam test, which is when a group of relevant professionals assess your treatment.

Gathering evidence can be done alone, or one of our solicitors could help you. Get in touch with our advisors to learn more about how our solicitors could help you claim compensation for a negligent leukaemia misdiagnosis.

What Is The Bolam Test?

One test that could establish whether a Leukaemia misdiagnosis was caused by clinical negligence is based on a legal principle in Bolam v Friern Hospital Management Committee (1957) 1 WLR 583.

The Bolam test is a peer review of a medical professional’s actions. A responsible body of medical professionals would be established, and they would assess the actions of the medical professional/s involved in the case.  If they arrived at the conclusion that the standard of care was negligent, this could help to support your case. 

However, the Bolam test is not the only method that could be used to establish whether you could be eligible for compensation. You would also need to prove that the negligence you suffered caused you to experience avoidable harm. 

To learn more about how to prove a misdiagnosis claim, and what evidence could be useful in doing so, please read on. Alternatively, you can call an advisor to discuss your case. They will be happy to answer any questions you may have.

Estimating Settlements In Leukaemia Misdiagnosis Claims 

If your leukaemia misdiagnosis claim is successful, you will receive compensation. Your potential compensation could be made up of two heads of claim: general damages, and special damages.

General damages is the head of your claim that compensates you for the pain and suffering you go through as a result of your misdiagnosis. For example, if the misdiagnosis leads to delays in treatment, this could allow your cancer to spread and your symptoms to worsen.

Solicitors often refer to the Judicial College Guidelines (JCG) when they value medical negligence compensation. This is because the JCG contains a list of injuries and illnesses, and provides guideline compensation amounts for varying types and severities. Below, you can find some examples of these guidelines and conditions that could develop due to the delay in diagnosis.

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Injury Compensation Bracket Notes
Moderately Severe Brain Damage (b) £219,070 to £282,010 There will be substantial dependence on others as the claimant will be suffering from serious disabilities.
Moderate Brain Damage (c) (i) £150,110 to £219,070 This bracket holds no prospect of employment, a risk of epilepsy, and a moderate to severe intellectual deficit.
Moderate Brain Damage (c) (ii) £90,720 to £150,110 In this bracket the person will suffer a moderate to modest intellectual deficit and the ability to work is greatly reduced.
Moderate Brain Damage (c) (iii) £43,060 to £90,720 An effect is had on concentration and memory, and there is a reduction in the ability to work.
Spleen Injuries (a) £20,800 to £26,290 Where there is a risk of internal infection due to the loss of the spleen.
Spleen Injuries (b) £4,350 to £8,640 Where the spleen is lost, but the risks above are not present.

Examples Of Special Damages 

Special damages is the head of your claim that covers the financial harm your leukaemia misdiagnosis causes. For example, under special damages, you may be able to claim back the cost of:

  • Travel to and from hospitals or appointments
  • Medical bills
  • Prescriptions
  • Counselling
  • Home care and domestic help

A solicitor can help you identify all the losses that you could claim compensation for, but it’s important to have evidence to prove these losses. As such, it can be a good idea to save any bills or receipts you receive that are related to your misdiagnosis.

To find out how one of our solicitors could help you claim medical negligence compensation, get in touch with our team today.

No Win No Fee Leukaemia Misdiagnosis Claims

The medical negligence claims process may feel less stressful with the help of a solicitor. Our solicitors offer their legal services under a Conditional Fee Agreement (CFA), which is a type of No Win No Fee arrangement. With a CFA, you don’t have to pay any fees to your solicitor upfront or as your claim is ongoing in order for them to work on your case.

If your case succeeds, your solicitor will take a success fee from your compensation. This is taken as a percentage that has a legislative cap, allowing you to keep the majority of your settlement award. However, if your case does not succeed, your solicitor will not expect you to pay this fee.

Our solicitors are here to help. To find out if you could be eligible to work with one of our solicitors on a No Win No Fee basis, get in touch with our team:

Find Out More About The Medical Misdiagnosis Claims Process 

To learn more about the claims process for medical misdiagnosis cases, we recommend:

Alternatively, you can find more information here:

Contact our team today to find out if you could make a leukaemia misdiagnosis compensation claim.