In this guide we look at when and how you could claim leukaemia misdiagnosis compensation. According to cancer statistics from Cancer Research UK, Leukaemia is the 12th most common type of cancer in the UK. Each year, there are around 10,300 new cases and 4,830 deaths from leukaemia from 2017-2019 in the UK. As with any type of cancer, the earlier leukaemia is diagnosed and treatment starts, the better the prognosis for a patient.
Blood cancer misdiagnosis, such as the failure to diagnose chronic lymphocytic leukaemia or acute myeloid leukaemia, can have serious and even fatal consequences. If your blood cancer was misdiagnosed you could claim compensation. However, you will need to satisfy specific eligibility requirements. Our guide covers what these are.
Additionally, we provide information about how compensation could be awarded for successful cancer misdiagnosis claims. Our guide concludes with a look at how you could have legal support from a specialist medical negligence solicitor on a No Win No Fee basis.
If, after reading our leukaemia medical negligence claim guide, you have any questions, please contact our team. A team member can discuss leukaemia misdiagnosis claims with you and assess whether you might have a valid case. Speak to our advisory team:
- By calling an advisor on 0800 408 7825
- By filling in our ‘contact us’ form online,
- Or by using the live support feature below.
Browse Our Guide
- What Is Leukaemia?
- How Is Leukaemia Diagnosed?
- How Can A Blood Cancer Misdiagnosis Happen?
- Can I Claim Leukaemia Misdiagnosis Compensation?
- How Do I Prove My Claim For Leukaemia Misdiagnosis Compensation?
- How Much Could I Claim For A Leukaemia Misdiagnosis?
- Make A No Win No Fee Cancer Misdiagnosis Compensation Claim
- More Resources About Making A Medical Negligence Claim
What Is Leukaemia?
Leukaemia is a type of blood cancer. There are several different types of leukaemia. These include:
- Acute Myeloid Leukaemia (AML) – this is a fast and aggressive type of blood cancer which requires immediate treatment.
- Acute Lymphocytic Leukaemia (ALL) – cancerous cells build up in your bone marrow and there is no space for the production of normal blood cells.
- Chronic Myeloid Leukaemia (CML) – symptoms may not be obvious and could be similar to other illnesses.
- Chronic Lymphocytic Leukaemia (CLL) – this is a rare and slower moving type of cancer.
- Hairy Cell Leukaemia (HCL) – a rare type of leukaemia that develops slowly.
Leukaemia is a progressive illness. It can affect the blood-forming organs and the bone marrow. Leukaemia may form when white blood cells in the bone marrow do not grow as they should.
What Are The Main Symptoms Of Leukaemia?
The symptoms of leukaemia may differ depending on the type of leukaemia you have and whether it is a faster and more aggressive form of the disease.
Common symptoms of leukaemia may include,
- Fever or a high temperature.
- Weight loss.
- Shortness of breath.
- Tiredness/ feeling weak.
- Pale skin.
- Easily bruising or bleeding.
- Getting infections easily and taking longer to recover.
- Swelling in your lymph nodes.
You might be eligible to make a claim for leukaemia misdiagnosis compensation if a medical professional failed to diagnose you. Call our advisory team to find out more.
How Is Leukaemia Diagnosed?
Your GP or another healthcare practitioner can refer you to several tests that can be used to diagnose leukaemia.
Tests which may be used to diagnose leukaemia include:
- A blood count. This measures the amount of white and red blood cells as well as platelets in your blood. Your GP or a specialist may also request further types of blood tests to check for a liver or kidney injury. Leukaemia may cause organ damage to the kidneys.
- Bone marrow biopsy. A sample of bone marrow will be removed from the hip and will be checked under a microscope.
- Scans. A doctor may refer you for an x-ray, an ultrasound, an MRI, CT or PET scan to create a detailed image of the inside of your body.
Further testing may also be necessary to confirm a diagnosis of leukaemia. Contact us to learn about leukaemia misdiagnosis compensation and how it could be awarded if a GP or other medical professional failed to refer you for testing despite presenting with symptoms that indicated the presence of blood cancer.
How Can A Blood Cancer Misdiagnosis Happen?
Below we provide several examples of how leukaemia may be misdiagnosed.
- Your GP fails to refer you for further testing such as blood tests or fails to refer you to a specialist. This could lead to your diagnosis being delayed.
- A specialist failing to order appropriate tests to diagnose blood cancer. This may be negligence if it would be expected that they do order the tests.
- Failing to correctly interpret or read the results of scans or blood tests.
If a doctor failed to diagnose your illness but acted in a way expected of a similar medical professional, they may not be negligent. Therefore, you would not have a valid clinical negligence claim.
However, if they did not meet the standard of care expected and you were harmed as a result, you could make a leukaemia misdiagnosis claim. We further discuss this and the criteria you need to meet to sue a doctor for negligence in the next section.
Speak to our team and find out if you could make a leukaemia misdiagnosis compensation claim today.
Can I Claim Leukaemia Misdiagnosis Compensation?
When you seek medical attention, the healthcare professionals responsible for your treatment automatically owe you a duty of care. This means that they must provide treatment that meets the expected standards. Negligence occurs when the medical provider fails to meet professional standards through a negligent act or omission. This then causes harm, such as a missed diagnosis leading to delayed treatment, to the patient that wouldn’t have otherwise occurred.
However, in order to claim leukaemia misdiagnosis compensation, you will need to prove:
- You were owed a duty of care by a healthcare professional.
- The medical professional breached this duty and failed to diagnose your illness. For example, if your blood tests indicated that leukaemia could be present, but they failed to send you for further testing.
- This breach caused you unnecessary harm. For example, due to the misdiagnosis, your spleen was damaged and had to be removed when it wouldn’t have been had you been diagnosed when you first presented with symptoms.
To learn more about when and how to claim compensation, please speak to a member of our team.
How Do I Prove My Claim For Leukaemia Misdiagnosis Compensation?
In order to make a leukaemia misdiagnosis claim, you need to prove that you meet the eligibility requirements discussed above. The evidence gathered will need to show liability for the harm you sustained.
The following evidence could help you to prove your case:
- Medical records including the results of any tests and scans you have had, as well as proof of your original misdiagnosis and later correct diagnosis.
- A medical report from an independent medical expert. As part of your claim your solicitor may organise for you to attend a medical appointment with an independent expert.
- Witness statements can be taken by the appropriate person during the medical negligence claims process of anyone who saw the effect the misdiagnosis had on your overall wellbeing.
If you would like to discuss what evidence you could collect to support your case for leukaemia misdiagnosis compensation, speak to a member of our advisory team.
How Much Could I Claim For A Leukaemia Misdiagnosis?
Settlements could consist of up to two heads of claim: general and special damages. These will consider how the cancer misdiagnosis has impacted your life.
General damages are awarded to compensate for the physical pain and mental suffering caused by the leukaemia misdiagnosis. To help arrive at your compensation payout under this head, those responsible for valuing medical negligence claims may refer to the guideline figures published by the Judicial College.
The table below looks at figures that could be relevant to leukaemia misdiagnosis. The first row is illustrative of what you could be awarded for your pain and suffering, as well as additional compensation for financial losses. Figures in the remaining rows are taken from the 17th edition of the Judicial College Guidelines (JCG). As all claims for cancer misdiagnoses are different, with different factors affecting each one, the table is only supplied for guidance.
| Form Of Injury | Severity | Guideline Damages |
|---|---|---|
| Multiple injuries and financial losses | Serious to severe | Up to £1,000,000+ |
| Brain injuries | Very severe - A | £344,150 to £493,000 |
| Brain injuries | Moderately severe - B | £267,340 to £344,150 |
| Brain injuries | Moderate - C - i | £183,190 to £267,340 |
| Brain injuries | Moderate - C - ii | £110,720 to £183,190 |
| Brain injuries | Moderate - C - iii | £52,550 to £110,720 |
| Brain injuries | Less severe - D | £18,700 to £52,550 |
| Male reproductive system | Uncomplicated sterility - D | £68,430 to £87,080 |
| Female reproductive system | Infertility without complications - D | £21,920 to £44,840 |
| Spleen injuries | Loss - A | £25,380 to £32,090 |
In addition to general damages, you could be awarded compensation for your financial losses under special damages. You may be able to claim for:
- Loss of earnings and other income or workplace benefits.
- The cost of care in the home.
- Medical bills for treatment not available through the NHS.
You may be able to claim for other costs related to your misdiagnosis. In order to claim compensation for financial losses, you will need to provide evidence of these losses. Evidence could include receipts, invoices and bank statements.
Find out how much leukaemia misdiagnosis compensation you could claim by contacting our team today.
Make A No Win No Fee Cancer Misdiagnosis Compensation Claim
One concern potential claimants have is the cost of taking legal action. A No Win No Fee solicitor from our panel could help you to claim compensation through a Conditional Fee Agreement (CFA).
Under a CFA, you will usually not be asked to make any upfront or ongoing payments for your solicitor’s work. You will pay a fixed percentage of your final settlement as a success fee. This percentage is legally limited. If your claim is not successful, you won’t be asked to pay for their work.
To find out how a No Win No Fee solicitor from our panel could help you make a leukaemia misdiagnosis compensation claim, contact an advisor from our team. They can help assess your leukaemia misdiagnosis claim and if it seems valid, you could be connected to one of the medical negligence solicitors from our panel. To speak to a team member:
- Call 0800 408 7825 to talk to an advisor.
- Fill in our online ‘contact us ’ form,
- Use the live-support chat.
More Resources About Making A Medical Negligence Claim
In addition to the information above, we have also included the following medical negligence resources.
Additional guides on our site:
- If unnecessary surgery has been carried out on you due to misdiagnosis of an illness or injury, you could claim compensation.
- If you have been given the wrong medication for your illness, you could make a medication error compensation claim.
- A prescription error in a hospital could have harmful consequences. Find out how to claim in this guide.
External references:
- The NHS Constitution for England has further information on your rights as a patient.
- Find out how to complain to the NHS in this guide.
- You can learn more about Leukaemia in this guide from Cancer Research UK
We hope our guide to making a leukaemia misdiagnosis compensation claim has helped you. For further information, please contact one of our advisors today.