When you have an ailment or unexplained symptoms and you visit your California physician, you want to feel confident he or she will be able to appropriately assess your condition and render you an accurate diagnosis. Unfortunately, however, doctors are not immune to error, but the consequences that can occur when doctors misdiagnose you can prove considerable and life-changing. At Kampf, Schiavone & Associates, we understand just how much an inaccurate medical diagnosis can upend your life, and we have helped many clients facing similar circumstances seek appropriate recourse.
According to Fox News, about 5 percent of all adult Americans will receive an inaccurate medical diagnosis each year, and these might include delayed diagnoses, wrong diagnoses or failures to diagnose altogether. Part of this is likely due to the fact that many symptoms can suggest more than one condition or ailment, and it can be difficult for physicians to narrow down the exact cause of yours.
Some health conditions are more commonly misdiagnosed than others, however, among them certain forms of cancer. Breast cancer, colorectal cancer and lung cancer, specifically, are commonly misdiagnosed, and they together account for about 10 percent of all medical misdiagnoses. Because the prognosis for cancer patients typically improves considerably through early detection, misdiagnosed cancers poses a very real, potentially life-ending problem for patients.
Cancers are not the only types of conditions that doctors commonly misdiagnose, however. Heart attacks, strokes and pulmonary embolism also make the cut. You can find out more about misdiagnosis and medical malpractice on our webpage.
