Misdiagnosis of Cancer

Misdiagnosis of Cancer

A diagnosis of cancer can be delayed or missed because in early stages there may not be any symptoms. In addition, some symptoms of cancer can be vague and similar to symptoms of other diseases or conditions. For example, symptoms of brain cancer may mimic symptoms of a migraine headache or transient ischemic attack. Symptoms of breast cancer may resemble symptoms of mastitis or fibrocystic breasts. Symptoms of prostate cancer can be similar to symptoms of benign prostatic hyperplasia.

Symptoms of lung cancer can mimic symptoms of bronchitis or COPD. Symptoms of pancreatic cancer can be similar to symptoms of liver failure or pancreatitis. Symptoms of colorectal cancer may resemble symptoms of hemorrhoids, and symptoms of bladder cancer can be similar to symptoms of a urinary tract infection....more about Cancer »

Cancer misdiagnosis: Cancer may be misdiagnosed....more about Cancer »

Diseases for which Cancer may be an alternative diagnosis

The other diseases for which Cancer is listed as a possible alternative diagnosis in their lists include:

• Anorexia Nervosa
• Chronic Fatigue Syndrome
• Chronic Neutrophilic Leukemia
• Cyst
• Diabetic Diarrhea
• Diabetic Gastroparesis
• Exfoliative dermatitis
• Fatigue
• Graves Disease
• Halitosis
• Leukoplakia
• Oral leukoplakia
• Oral thrush

Cancer: Medical Mistakes

Related medical mistakes may include:

• Cancer Health Mistakes:
  • Cancer (All) -- Health Mistakes
  • Breast Cancer -- Health Mistakes
  • Colorectal Cancer -- Health Mistakes
• more mistakes...»

Cancer: Undiagnosed Conditions

Commonly undiagnosed conditions in related areas may include:

• Women's Reproductive Health: diseases that are commonly undiagnosed:
  • Overactive Bladder Syndrome -- Undiagnosed
  • PCOS -- Undiagnosed
  • Chlamydia -- Undiagnosed
  • Pelvic Inflammatory Disease -- Undiagnosed
  • Cervical Cancer -- Undiagnosed
  • Breast Cancer -- Undiagnosed
  • Ovarian Cancer -- Undiagnosed
  • Von Willebrand Disease -- Undiagnosed
  • more ...»
• more undiagnosed conditions...»

Common Misdiagnoses and Cancer

Spitz nevi misdiagnosed as dangerous melanoma skin cancer: One possible misdiagnosis to consider in lieu of melanoma is spitz nevi. See melanoma and spitz nevi.

Cancer: Rare Types

Rare types of medical disorders and diseases in related medical areas:

• Women's Reproductive Health -- rare types of diseases:
  • Overactive Bladder Syndrome -- Rare Types
  • PCOS -- Rare Types
  • Chlamydia -- Rare Types
  • Pelvic Inflammatory Disease -- Rare Types
  • Cervical Cancer -- Rare Types
  • Breast Cancer -- Rare Types
  • Ovarian Cancer -- Rare Types
  • Von Willebrand Disease -- Rare Types
  • more ...»
• more rare diseases...»

Failure To Diagnose Cancer

Failure to diagnose Cancer may be associated with the following:

• Cancer is often undiagnosed as it usually has few if any symptoms in the early stages
• The failure to diagnose cancer in a timely manner can have a great impact on treatment effectiveness and survival prognosis
• As cancer can affect virtually any part of the body, the symptoms may be extremely varied in nature and severity and thus may be attributed to numerous other causes or simply ignored. For example, a persistent sore on the face may be a sign of skin cancer but the patient may simply consider it harmless and investigate no further. Gastrointestinal cancers often produce gastrointestinal symptoms that may be put down to general causes such as stress, dietary changes or illness
• Misdiagnosis of cancer can result from inadequate testing techniques or misinterpretation of the results. Sometimes, suspicious results are not followed up on
• Sometimes, insufficient tests are ordered to further investigate suspicious symptoms
• Many health professionals do not have sufficient knowledge of the vast array of possible cancers. Nevertheless, even common cancer symptoms are sometimes overlooked
• Some patients have their cancer symptoms overlooked if they don't fall into the category typical for a certain cancer. For example, breast cancer in males or young females is often missed
• Cancer symptoms in children are often missed as parents and sometimes even health professionals tend to ignore children's symptoms especially if they are vague or tend to come and go (e.g. tiredness, abdominal discomfort and pain)
• Many medical negligence cases relate to the failure to diagnose a cancer

Notes On Wrong Diagnosis Of Cancer

Wrong diagnosis of Cancer may be associated with the following:

• Some cancers are very rare and are hence less likely to be diagnosed correctly
• A misdiagnosis of a less serious condition with cancer can result in unnecessary treatment which can be quite invasive, disfiguring and debilitating e.g. chemotherapy, radiation therapy and surgery. Conversely, a cancer misdiagnosed as a less serious condition can lead to a reduced survival prognosis

Other Notes On Misdiagnosis Of Cancer

• Sometimes the aggressiveness of a particular cancer is underestimated and delays in further testing or treatment can impact greatly on prognosis

Medical news summaries about misdiagnosis of Cancer:

The following medical news items are relevant to misdiagnosis of Cancer:

• 12 percent cancers initially misdiagnosed
• 19 doctors fail to diagnose man’s oral cancer
• 40 health professionals fail to diagnose brain tumor
• 76000 pounds awarded when son dies from misdiagnosis of hypercalcaemia
• A little girl undergoes great suffering due to a misdiagnosis
• Appendicitis operation uncovers Hodgkin’s disease
• Brain tumour misdiagnosed as ears wax
• Brain tumour misdiagnosed as sinus infection
• Breast cancer and litigation
• Cancer mistake acknowledged
• Cancer screening tests have a high rate of false positive results
• Court order 4.2m compensation for breast cancer misdiagnosis
• Delayed tumour diagnosis results n 160,000 settlement
• Doctor practising after apologizing for medical error cover-up
• Doctors apology after woman goes blind from undiagnosed tumour
• Failure to diagnose lung cancer in famed professor results in lawsuit for two Boston hospitals and three doctors.
• For 2 months man believes he is dying of pancreatic cancer
• Gay woman sues hospital for partner's misdiagnosis of breast cancer
• Inflammatory breast cancer often misdiagnosed or undiagnosed
• Judge refuses to seal details of misdiagnosis case
• Lung cancers due to asbestos are not being diagnosed
• Man dies of cancer 9 months after last visit to doctor
• Man dies of colorectal cancer after misdiagnosis
• Man fails in bid to have disciplinary action brought against doctor
• Man misdiagnosed many times before colon cancer finally discovered
• Man receives 192,000 pounds for throat cancer misdiagnosis
• Man seeks action against the surgeon who misdiagnosed his late wife
• Man sues after being diagnosed with another patients terminal condition
• Man sues for loss of leg due to undiagnosed cancer
• Man unable to have children wins a 30,000 pound settlement
• Man's bladder removed due to cancer misdiagnosed as bladder infection
• Medical malpractice lawsuit filed but doctor can't be found
• Misdiagnosed cancer in 12 year old boy
• Misdiagnosed ovarian cancer leads to poorer prognosis
• Mistaken breast removal
• Mother's chances of survival at 7 percent due to delayed diagnosis of cancer
• Obstetrician suspended for a year and another doctor reprimanded for misdiagnosis
• Ovarian cancer diagnosed in woman a decade after a hysterectomy
• Parents jailed for allowing cancer to ravage daughter's body
• Pathologist at hospital not punished for a litany of errors
• PSA tests are not as "useless" as the inventor claims
• Sarcoma’s often misdiagnosed or undiagnosed until it reaches late stages
• Software allows accurate visual diagnosis
• Spinal surgery resulting in paraplegia leads to 16 million award
• Symptoms of ovarian cancer should not be ignored
• Undiagnosed brain tumour put down to stress
• Victory reversed after inadmissible evidence used in medical malpractice suit
• Wife dies of misdiagnosed bowel cancer
• Woman and daughter sue over cancer misdiagnosed as growing pains
• Woman dies after she was told she was too young to have breast cancer
• Woman dies of undiagnosed lung cancer
• Woman prescribed headache pills for malignant brain tumour
• Woman to receive compensation after gross misdiagnosis leads to unnecessary surgery
• Woman with breast cancer told she had Lyme disease
• Woman with lung cancer misdiagnosed with pneumonia and bronchitis
• Woman's ulcers misdiagnosed as cancer
• Woman’s brain tumour receives 35 different misdiagnoses over 20 years
• Wrongly diagnosed cancer leads to unnecessary removal of lung lobe
• Young teens cancer misdiagnosed
• More news »

Misdiagnosis and Cancer deaths

Cancer is a condition that can possibly be deadly if misdiagnosed...more »

General Misdiagnosis Articles

Read these general articles with an overview of misdiagnosis issues.

• Misdiagnosis Overview
• How Common is Misdiagnosis?
• Over-Diagnosed Diseases
• Under-Diagnosed Diseases
• Types of Misdiagnosis
• Wrong Type Misdiagnosis
• Why Does Misdiagnosis Occur?
• Difficult Diseases to Diagnose
• More premium medical articles ...

About misdiagnosis:

When checking for a misdiagnosis of Cancer or confirming a diagnosis of Cancer, it is useful to consider what other medical conditions might be possible misdiagnoses or other alternative conditions relevant to diagnosis. These alternate diagnoses of Cancer may already have been considered by your doctor or may need to be considered as possible alternative diagnoses or candidates for misdiagnosis of Cancer. For a general overview of misdiagnosis issues for all diseases, see Overview of Misdiagnosis.

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