Can I claim compensation for a missed brain tumour diagnosis?
Medical accident solicitor Clarissa Ellerington reports on important lessons to be learned from the settlement of a claim for delay in diagnosing a brain tumour. Clarissa successfully sued the hospital and recovered compensation totaling £250,000.
Diagnosing a Brain Tumour
A missed or delayed diagnosis of a brain tumour can have devastating consequences. If a doctor, hospital, or healthcare professional failed to identify a tumour when it should reasonably have been diagnosed, you may be entitled to claim compensation for clinical negligence.
Early diagnosis can be critical. In some cases, identifying a tumour sooner may have allowed for monitoring, further investigations, earlier surgery, radiotherapy, or other treatments that could have improved the patient’s outcome.
What Are the Symptoms of a Brain Tumour That Should Not Be Ignored?
Brain tumours do not always present with obvious symptoms. Common warning signs can include:
- Persistent or worsening headaches
- Changes in vision
- Dizziness or balance problems
- Tinnitus or hearing changes
- Seizures or seizure-like episodes
- Facial numbness or weakness
- Unusual sensory symptoms
- Cognitive or behavioural changes
While these symptoms can be caused by many conditions, healthcare professionals should investigate them appropriately and act on abnormal findings.
Can a Brain Tumour Be Missed on an MRI Scan?
Yes. A brain tumour may be missed if:
- An MRI or CT scan is incorrectly interpreted;
- An abnormal finding is overlooked by a radiologist;
- A scan report is not acted upon appropriately;
- Follow-up investigations are not arranged; or
- A patient is not referred to the correct specialist.
When this happens, valuable treatment opportunities may be lost.
What Happens If a Brain Tumour Diagnosis Is Delayed?
The consequences of a delayed diagnosis depend on the type and location of the tumour.
A delay may result in:
- Tumour growth
- More invasive treatment being required
- Reduced treatment options
- Increased neurological damage
- Vision loss
- Increased risk of seizures
- A poorer long-term prognosis
In some cases, a tumour that could have been treated successfully at an earlier stage becomes significantly more difficult to manage.
How Do You Prove a Brain Tumour Negligence Claim?
Brain tumour misdiagnosis claims are often complex and require detailed expert investigation.
Our solicitors will typically obtain and review:
- GP records
- Hospital records
- MRI and CT scan images
- Radiology reports
- Referral records
- Specialist correspondence
- Treatment records
Independent medical experts are then instructed to consider whether the diagnosis should have been made earlier and whether the delay affected the patient’s outcome.
What Must Be Proved in a Delayed Brain Tumour Diagnosis Claim?
The key legal questions are usually:
a) Should the tumour have been diagnosed earlier?
Expert evidence is used to determine whether the care fell below an acceptable standard.
b) Would earlier diagnosis have made a difference?
It is not enough to show that a diagnosis was delayed. It must also be established that the delay caused avoidable injury or worsened the outcome.
c) What losses have been suffered?
Compensation may be available for:
- Pain and suffering
- Additional treatment
- Loss of earnings
- Care and assistance needs
- Travel expenses
- Rehabilitation costs
- Future financial losses
Can I Claim Compensation If My MRI Scan Was Misread?
Potentially, yes.
Some brain tumour claims arise because a tumour was visible on an earlier MRI scan but was not identified or reported. Others arise because an abnormal scan result was not acted upon appropriately.
In these cases, specialist radiology evidence is often required to determine whether the tumour should have been identified sooner.
Example: Missed Skull-Base Meningioma Claim
In Clarissa’s recent case, issues arose following an alleged delay in identifying a skull-base meningioma on an earlier MRI scan.
The claim required careful review of the radiology evidence together with expert input from multiple medical specialisms. A key issue was determining what treatment options would probably have been available had the tumour been diagnosed earlier.
How Can a Clinical Negligence Solicitor Help You?
Our clinical negligence team has extensive experience investigating claims involving:
- Missed brain tumours
- Delayed brain tumour diagnoses
- Misreported MRI scans
- Delayed referrals
- Neurological negligence
- Failure to investigate symptoms properly
We work with leading independent medical experts to establish what happened, whether the standard of care fell below acceptable levels, and whether compensation can be recovered.
Contact Our Brain Tumour Negligence Solicitors
If you believe a brain tumour diagnosis was missed or delayed, contact our specialist clinical negligence solicitors for a free initial consultation. We can assess your case, explain your legal options, and advise whether you may be entitled to claim compensation.
