Failure to Diagnose

5 subtle indications that you could have skin cancer

Published on: August 7, 2017 | By Jeff DeFrancisco

Your doctor hasn’t diagnosed you with skin cancer yet, but you can’t help feeling nervous. Sometimes, you’re almost paranoid. You know that cancer is often easiest to cure if it’s caught early, so you don’t want a delayed diagnosis to put you months or even years behind.

This can especially be an issue if cancer begins to spread. If not, localized treatments of skin cancer often work. Knowing that you have the disease as soon as you have it is important.

Now, all signs of cancer aren’t obvious. Below are a few subtle signs that you and your doctor should look out for.

Myths about strokes could take lives, so know the truth

Published on: August 4, 2017 | By Jeff DeFrancisco

Failing to identify a stroke quickly can lead to a serious brain injury or death. People who suffer from these life-threatening conditions don’t have much time to seek help. They may be paralyzed, unable to speak clearly and confused.

There are many myths about strokes that could cause someone to misdiagnose them. For example, on myth is that you can identify a stroke by looking at a person’s tongue. If it’s crooked, that’s supposed to mean that they’re having a stroke. That’s not entirely true, though, and it is difficult to know what’s “crooked” for one person compared to the next.

Instead of listening to myths, it’s important for medical providers to follow the correct procedures for identifying a stroke. What are they?

Why so many pregnant women are dying

Published on: July 7, 2017 | By Jeff DeFrancisco

When a woman discovers she is pregnant, the visits to her New York health care provider will typically become more and more frequent, the closer she gets to the birth. The standard examinations and tests allow the doctor to identify the most commonly occurring pregnancy issues. According to the American Heart Association, for many women, these are not enough.

Research indicates that cardiac arrest kills approximately one out of every 12,000 American women who are admitted to the hospital for delivery. This does not include pregnant mothers who are not at the hospital when their heart malfunctions and stops beating. Researchers believe one problem is a lack of education for those who treat women suffering from cardiac arrest. For example, while CPR should be performed the same, a first responder, emergency room provider or staff member in the obstetrics department may not understand the minor differences in defibrillation protocols or other important details.

The AHA points out that there are many contributors to the increasing number of pregnancy-related fatalities, but statistics show cardiovascular disease is at the top of the list. This could be in part because of the number of high-risk pregnancies. The following health conditions could contribute to the likelihood of cardiac arrest:

Diagnosing asthma is vital to a healthy recovery

Published on: June 19, 2017 | By Jeff DeFrancisco

Your child came home wheezing, so you gave him some allergy medication and let him go to sleep. In the morning, he was still struggling to breathe, so you took him to the doctor. There, your doctor said he had a minor cold and prescribed cold medicine.

The next day, your child was still struggling to get a deep breath. Worried about the doctor’s lack of concern, you rush your child to the hospital. There, the emergency room attendant sends your child immediately into treatment for an acute asthma attack. Only a few minutes later, your child is being scanned for a collapsed lung and rushed into the operating room for treatment.

Fortunately, cases of collapsing lungs are often treatable, though they do open your child up to the risk of a collapsed lung in the future. Had the doctor you saw the first day realized the severity of your child’s condition, this may have been avoided, though. As your child struggled for air, the worsening asthma took its toll and caused the lung to collapse completely. Without treatment, the positive outcome you received at the hospital may not have been the case.

10 signs of cancer that doctors shouldn’t miss

Published on: May 15, 2017 | By Jeff DeFrancisco

Cancer isn’t always easy to detect, and for some patients, no amount of medical technology would have been enough to know it was there earlier than it was detected. In other cases, doctors’ negligence and inaction lead to patients who have cancers that are unable to be treated or in advanced stages that may have otherwise been prevented.

What can you do if you suspect you have cancer or have found out that your doctor did not diagnose you correctly? You have a right to file a medical malpractice case. In the meantime, here are 10 signs that cancer could be an ailment you’re fighting. Although no specific symptoms are prevalent through all types of cancer, knowing some common symptoms could help save lives.

1. Bloody coughs

Study: Misdiagnosis occurs more often than some may think

Published on: April 5, 2017 | By Jeff DeFrancisco

While people may believe they are leaving the emergency room or outpatient clinic with a diagnosis and treatment plan, they may be surprised to learn that they have received the wrong diagnosis. Medical misdiagnosis occurs at an alarming rate in these types of medical settings, and this can be a real cause for concern. When physicians misdiagnose patients, or fail to provide a diagnosis at all, people run the risk of developing a worse condition or undergoing treatment that would otherwise be unnecessary.

The study, which was published in BMJ Quality and Safety, found that one in 20 adults in the U.S. who are seen in community health clinics or emergency rooms leave these facilities with the wrong diagnosis. This equates to approximately 12 million Americans each year. In at least six million of those cases, people were at risk of being seriously harmed because of the wrong diagnosis. For example, patients may have been diagnosed with pneumonia when they actually had lung cancer.

One possible reason for these acts of medical negligence is the chaotic environment of these facilities. Physicians and nurses see multiple patients, and may not have an accurate and comprehensive medical history of the patient. Furthermore, physicians are often unable to spend an appropriate amount of time with each patient, as they are often rushed from one room to the other. Physicians may order the wrong screening tests or misread reports, leading to medical errors as well.

Could cancer startup reduce delayed-diagnosis claims?

Published on: January 12, 2017 | By Jeff DeFrancisco

A former Google executive has launching a startup with a personal agenda. After losing his wife to colon cancer, Jeff Huber hopes his new startup, Grail, can develop a test that will detect cancer early. He hopes to prevent more late diagnoses, like his wife’s, that can make cancer more difficult to treat.

The startup is looking to raise $1 billion in venture capital to develop a test that can detect any of the main types of cancer, Forbes reported recently.

If the venture is successful, it could potentially save or extend lives. And the promise of making it easier to detect cancer early on could possibly help prevent a certain type of malpractice claim: delayed diagnosis.

Cancer warning signs that women can’t afford to ignore

Published on: December 4, 2016 | By Jeff DeFrancisco

Because women’s bodies are constantly changing throughout their lives, it can be difficult to discern normal changes from symptoms of potentially serious problems. In this post, we’re sharing five common cancer symptoms that are dangerous for women to overlook.

Many women look out for the well-being of multiple people – including children, partners, friends and relatives. However, it is essential that you prioritize your own health, too – for yourself and for the people you love.

Breast changes – It is always wise to have your doctor look at any lumps, skin dimpling, changes in your nipples or red skin on your breasts.
Bloating – Bloating is very common in women and often harmless. However, if it persists for more than a week or two, or comes with weight loss or bleeding, it may be a sign of ovarian cancer.
Bleeding in between periods – If you still get a period, report any spotting in between cycles to your doctor. If you are bleeding after menopause, it is essential to get checked out right away.
Skin changes – Do not delay if you have a mole that changes shape, color or size. It is a common sign of quickly-advancing skin cancer.
Blood in the stool or urine – Any unusual bleeding should be reported to a doctor, especially blood in your stool or urine that lasts more than a couple of days.

AI assistants may help doctors diagnose breast cancer

Published on: September 24, 2016 | By Jeff DeFrancisco

How new AI technology could save cancer patients

Doctors go through extensive training to learn to diagnose critical conditions such as cancer. But even the smartest, most diligent physicians make mistakes sometimes. According to the healthcare journal BMJ Quality and Safety, breast cancer is misdiagnosed up to 28 percent of the time. Some of these errors occur when physicians are reviewing breast biopsy samples. In the best conditions, pathologists can accurately identify breast cancer in these samples with 96 percent accuracy.

96 percent is pretty good, right? Objectively, yes, but we don’t think it’s good enough for the other four percent. That’s why we’re intrigued about a new technological development that could raise that number even high. Read on to learn more.

Paging Dr. Robot…

Researchers from Harvard Medical School (HMS) and Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center (BIDMC) recently published a study about an artificial intelligence system trained to detect breast cancer. By “showing” the system hundreds of cancerous and noncancerous lymph node biopsies, they were able to teach it how to accurately detect cancer 92 percent of the time.

Why are so many cancer patients misdiagnosed?

Published on: July 18, 2016 | By Jeff DeFrancisco

Five critical errors that can lead to misdiagnosis

When your body is fighting cancer, a prompt and accurate diagnosis can literally be a matter of life and death. So why do doctors keep getting it wrong?

According to the New York Times, doctors and pathologists misdiagnose up to 28 percent of patients — an alarmingly high number when you consider the damage that an inaccurate diagnosis can cause.