Novel Test to Spot the Most Deadly Prostate Cancer: Thousands Could be Saved
According to recent news, About 52,000 men are diagnosed with prostate cancer each year in the UK and approximately 30,000 of these cases are low-risk or non-aggressive tumours. But as many as 20,000 men in the UK undergo avoidable surgeries or radiotherapy every year.
There is a welcome breakthrough in the area of cancer diagnosis with the current discovery made by the Cambridge University doctors. Before now it was incredibly difficult to differentiate between malignant and benign prostate tumours especially at an early stage. While in some men the tumour can be aggressive, the others may have a tumour that grows slowly and won’t cause any problems whatsoever.
The present practice now is for doctors to give the patient an injection of a special solution and then perform an MRI scan. This scan will only show the size of the tumour but cannot differentiate whether it is aggressive or not. As a result of this, as many as 20,000 men in the UK undergo avoidable surgeries or radiotherapy every year.
However, with the new test, many men will be saved from the trauma of going through an unnecessary surgery or other interventions for benign prostate tumours. In the new test, researchers at Cambridge University attached a non-radioactive form of carbon (carbon-13), to a sugar-like molecule and injected it into a vein near the tumour. If the carbon-13 was retained by the tumour, then there is an indication that a high amount of lactose is being produced which means that the cancer is aggressive and therefore malignant.
Clinical neglect in Cancer patients
Cancer is one of the leading causes of death globally and this is because most times the disease is not diagnosed early enough. While it can be the fault of the patients who fail to go for scans earlier, other times cancer may result from negligence on the path of medical professionals. This could mostly come in the form of misdiagnosis. It could also come from unnecessary delays in beginning the necessary treatments.
The chances of survival are greatly boosted when early and accurate diagnosis is done. When the patient suffers avoidable complications, trauma, injury or pain as a result of mismanagement or negligence from the healthcare professionals, he/she or the family can make cancer negligence claims.
Statistics of Cancer Misdiagnosis
In the UK, researches have shown that one in five cancer patients only get to know their true state after more than six months.
With about 95,000 cancer surgeries performed annually in the UK, medical experts have deduced that a three-month delay in making the right cancer diagnosis, could potentially lead to 5,000 more deaths. Similarly, a six-month delay could lead to approximately 11,000 more deaths yearly.
What are the key reasons For Cancer Misdiagnosis?
The major reasons for cancer misdiagnosis are
- Incorrect interpretation of test results and thus give a false “all-clear” to the patient
- Failing to refer patients for further confirmatory tests after initial tests suggest that there could be a cancerous cell.
You may take legal actions against your doctor for failing to provide you with the right standard of care causing you to suffer unnecessarily.
You can make claims in the following conditions
- Cases of misdiagnosis
- Delays in commencing treatment
- Poor judgment or analysis of progress of treatment
Why Choose Us
Our solicitors at NHS negligence claims, have the required expertise in this area of medical negligence claims and have represented several clients over the years and secured highest possible compensation amounts for them. Not only that, we ensure that claims are settled quickly so that the person can in the shortest possible time put behind the memories of the ugly incident and make the best out of his or her life going forward.
We are dedicated to serving our clients in the best possible way with the right legal counsel and professional legal representation. You can be very free to talk to us about your experience and be rest assured that you will get justice. We would of course assist you in making available all documents and information you need to see that your case is successfully proven and the right amount of compensation paid to you.
Furthermore, we also provide you with an opportunity to make your claims without having to pay any upfront legal fees through our No Win No Fee policy.
Reach out to us today on 0800 999 3372 and let the right medical negligence solicitors handle your claims for you.