How Can Doctors Be Sued for Not Finding Cancer?

Hearing the words “you have cancer” is life-altering. But what happens when those words come too late…or not at all?

Nearly 40.5% of men and women will be diagnosed with cancer at some point in their lives, according to the National Cancer Institute. Early detection is often the difference between life-saving treatment and a devastating outcome. When doctors miss the warning signs, fail to order necessary tests, or misinterpret results, the consequences can be deadly.

Can doctors be sued for not finding cancer? If their negligence delayed your diagnosis and caused harm, the law may be on your side. Keep reading to learn how you can take action.

Can Doctors Be Sued for Not Finding Cancer?

Doctors have a duty of care to provide timely and accurate diagnoses based on a patient’s symptoms and medical history. When they fail to meet this standard, and a delayed cancer diagnosis leads to harm, legal action may be an option.

A medical malpractice lawsuit can be filed if a doctor’s failure to diagnose cancer resulted from negligence rather than a reasonable medical error. This means proving that:

The doctor-patient relationship existed
The doctor’s failure to diagnose fell below the accepted cancer diagnosis law standards
The misdiagnosis directly led to harm, such as worsened health, unnecessary treatments, or lost time for effective intervention

Some states have laws that limit how long a patient has to file a claim, which means acting quickly is often necessary.

How Medical Negligence Leads to a Missed Cancer Diagnosis

There are several ways a doctor’s negligence can lead to a cancer misdiagnosis claim. These include:

Failing to take patient complaints seriously
Misreading lab results, imaging scans, or pathology reports
Not ordering standard cancer screenings, despite clear risk factors
Overlooking a family history that indicates a higher cancer risk
Failing to refer the patient to a specialist for further testing

These errors can have serious consequences. According to Johns Hopkins Medicine, diagnostic errors contribute to roughly 40,000 to 80,000 preventable deaths per year in the U.S.

What You Need to Prove in a Medical Malpractice Case

Filing a medical malpractice lawsuit for a missed cancer diagnosis requires proving several key points. These include:

The doctor had a duty of care to diagnose and treat the patient
Their failure to diagnose cancer was negligent
The patient suffered harm as a direct result of the delayed diagnosis

Expert testimony is often required to establish that the doctor’s actions deviated from what a competent physician would have done in the same situation.

Get the Legal Support You Deserve

Can doctors be sued for not finding cancer? If negligence is involved, the answer is yes. While not every mistake qualifies as malpractice, doctors are responsible for providing a standard level of care.

At Cummings Law, we fight for real people whose lives have been turned upside down by negligence. Led by Brian Cummings, our firm has secured over $29 million for our clients in the past few years. We charge no upfront legal fees and work relentlessly to hold negligent medical providers accountable.