Ok, so when I was 16 I had nasal surgery. They did an MRI on my sinuses and found a mass of tissue in my sinuses. However my doctor did no further testing for the mass of tissue. I am now 20 and am still worried about it. Lately I've been reading up on sinus cancer. I'm worried that my mass of tissue might be cancer. If I end up with sinus cancer could I sue my doctor for medical malpractice since he did not do further testing?
I think a big white blob on an MRI that looks like a big tumor would be a good reason to look more into what is going on with my sinuses. It's called a precaution. Its like you have sex with someone and find out that they have AIDS but luckily they invented condoms. To help prevent the spread of an STD. That's why medical tests are made. It's a precaution to make sure a person is healthy
Oh, and by the way. Cancer in people my age is not rare. I know because my mom's an oncology nurse and has many patients around my age. If 3 year olds can get cancer so can I.
LT
Sure you can sue him... you can sue anyone... winning is another thing. Don't believe you would have much chances of wining this one.
zini
You could try though I dont think you would win. At your age most cancers are extremely rare and the doctor could be justified for not doing risky investigations into your sinuses which could have just made matters worse only to discover it is a benign polyp or cyst.
But if you're very worried you might as well seek some piece of mind with further explanation/investigation.
Pretty Mama
You would have had to follow through on it. The first thing that the lawyer would ask you is "why did you not follow through with this'. Doctors only go towards surgery if they see signs of a problem..it seems that your doc did not see any reason to pursue this any further so he didnt. However, if you kept calling and making appointments to complain that you are uncomfortable hw would have had a reason to pursue furthur testing.
djflare99
We are in the age where medical tests like MRI and CT scans can pick up a whole slew of abnormalities. There's a lot of controversy as what to do about these "incidentalomas" that are found. However, I think all doctors can more or less agree that it is NOT correct to go after every tumor that is found. Not only would medical costs skyrocket, patients with benign tumors that otherwise would have never been found nor cause any problems, have to undergo risks and complications of more tests like biopsies or surgeries.
Most "masses" in sinuses are benign polyps or tumors. Not all cancers are made the same. Breast cancer in a 70yo woman is not rare. Leukemia in a 3 year old child is not rare. Cancer of the sinus in your age group IS rare.
I think what a lot of non-medical people don't understand are that 1) everything in medicine is a risk/benefit consideration and 2) there are no tests that are 100% perfect. Let me give the following example (these are made up numbers): Let's say that chance of your mass being a cancer is 0.1%. And let's say that the chance of an adverse outcome but cutting the mass out with surgery is 2% (death, permanent disfigurement, chronic sinus problems, etc). Even when the mass is taken out, let's say the that diagnosis of cancer by pathology is 90% (meaning it will miss 10% of cancers). Then clearly, it's a greater benefit of doing nothing and taking a "chance" that the mass is cancer.
This is the kind of thought process that goes on in your doctor's head. If you are truly concerned, talk to your doctor, or find another doctor for a second opinion.
Oh, and to be successful in a lawsuit, you would have to prove that most other doctors, given the same scenario, would have gone after the mass...and not just the fact that there is cancer.
Orignal From: If this happens can i sue for medical malpractice?
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