You trust your doctor as the medical expert and have certain expectations of them. One of those is to recognize your symptoms, diagnose them, and treat the condition accordingly. In some cases, a misdiagnosis or delayed diagnosis can have severe medical consequences.
A delayed or missed diagnosis can have fatal consequences when dealing with serious conditions like cancer. Still, 12 million people may face a misdiagnosis of cancer each year. A cancer diagnosis impacts your entire life, so timely detection is critical.
THE EMOTIONAL TOLL OF A CANCER DIAGNOSIS
Cancer is now the leading cause of death, and getting diagnosed as soon as possible can lead to a better outlook for treatment. Failure to diagnose cancer until later stages not only impacts treatment options but can also take a toll on the patient’s mental health.
Immediately following a cancer diagnosis, there are many things that someone can experience. Depending on the initial prognosis, these feelings can have greater significance, but in general, people may experience the following:
- Fear about the future
- Anxiety regarding the treatment process
- Overwhelmed by the way your life may change
- A grieving process
Of course, everyone reacts to a diagnosis differently, and there’s no way to predict how each person will receive the news. Still, getting a proper medical diagnosis can help you not only work through the emotional aspects but it will also expedite treatment.
EXPERIENCING A DELAYED DIAGNOSIS
There are many reasons why a cancer diagnosis may have been initially missed. If you’ve been communicating your symptoms to your doctor and feel like it should have been caught sooner, you may be wondering what to do next. In that case, you may want to learn more about medical malpractice laws to help you figure out the appropriate action to take.
