What is the Average Payout for Cancer Misdiagnosis?

The average payout for cancer misdiagnosis would be calculated by adding together all settlements in a given timespan and dividing this figure by the number of successful claimants. However, given how many variants there are, knowing this figure is not likely to help you.

If you would like to make a clinical negligence claim then your settlement might consist of two heads; general damages and special damages. We discuss each below.

An independent medical assessment might be required as part of the claims process. This is to gain an understanding of what impact the cancer misdiagnosis has had on you, and can also be used to help value your claim.

General Damages

The pain and suffering caused by any injuries you’ve received due to negligent cancer treatment, including psychological injuries, come under general damages. To help assign value to your injuries, legal professionals may use a document titled the Judicial College Guidelines (JCG). Compensation brackets are listed next to injuries of different severities.

Our table below looks at a few figures taken from the JCG. We’ve also provided a figure in the top row (not taken from the JCG) to illustrate how you can be awarded for multiple instances of harm plus any costs related to this cancer misdiagnosis. This should be used as a guide as the amount you receive might vary depending on your circumstances.

Nature of Harm	Guideline Compensation Amount	Notes
Multiple instances of harm plus related costs	Up to £1,000,000 or more	Multiple organs and bones affected by cancer spreading plus related costs, such as nursing care, lost wages and domestic help.
Very Severe Brain Damage	£344,150 to £493,000	Severe cognitive and physical disabilities and significant impact on the senses and little to no language function require full time nursing care.
Double Incontinence	Up to £224,790	Loss of natural bowel function with total loss of bladder function.
Total Loss Of Bowel Function	Up to £183,190	The claimant has lost the natural function of their bowel and depends on a colostomy.
Below the knee amputation of one leg	£119,570 to £162,290	Awards consider phantom pains, stump problems, age, prosthetics, psychological problems and increased chance of developing osteoarthritis in the remaining joints.
Serious impaired bladder control	£78,080 to £97,540	Some pain and incontinence.
Male reproductive system	£68,430 to £87,080	Uncomplicated sterility without impotence or other aggravating features.
Moderately severe psychiatric damage	£23,270 to £66,920	Significant problems coping with life, however, the prognosis is more optimistic than in more serious cases.
Loss of spleen	£25,380 to £32,090	Immune system damage leading to continuous internal infection risk.

How Cancer Misdiagnosis Compensation Amounts Can Vary

Cancer misdiagnosis compensation amounts are going to vary between successful claimants. As you can see above, settlements will include compensation based on what body part was affect and to what severity. Additionally, if your cancer has spread, this will impact your misdiagnosis of cancer compensation.

Another factor impacting cancer misdiagnosis compensation amounts is a second head of claim called ‘special damages’. Not every claimant has expenses related to their misdiagnosis. Furthermore, these expenses need to be proven with documentation, such as payslips and receipts.

Examples of costs that could be recovered that affect the average payout for cancer misdiagnosis include:

Loss of earnings.
Home help, such as a cleaner while you recover.
Nursing care.
Cosmetic costs, such as wigs.
Prescription expenses.
Heating costs.

These are just examples. As every claimant is different, each claim could recover a range of different expenses. A member of the advisory team can help you establish your special damages and explain what evidence you should keep to prove these costs.

Am I Eligible To Claim For A Cancer Misdiagnosis Payout?

Yes, you could be eligible to claim a cancer misdiagnosis payout. However, you must have evidence that proves that:

A medical professional owed you a duty of care.
This duty was breached.
Because of this, you experienced unnecessary harm. Together, this is known as medical negligence.

All medical professionals owe their patients a duty of care. Per this duty of care, they must provide a minimum standard of care. If they fail to meet this minimum standard, and this results in a cancer misdiagnosis that causes you to suffer harm, then you may be able to make a medical negligence claim.

To find out if you could be eligible for a cancer misdiagnosis payout, or to get more information on the cancer misdiagnosis claims process, get in touch with our team. Our friendly advisors can offer a free consultation, through which they can offer more information.

Types Of Negligent Cancer Diagnosis

Cancer misdiagnosis could occur when your cancer is missed. If you present as having symptoms that could be cancer, for example, and your GP fails to refer you to a specialist because of a breach of duty of care, this could lead to a diagnostic delay.

In addition, scans and x-rays could be misread. A mass could be dismissed as non-cancerous from the images, for example, or missed entirely. You could also be given the all-clear after receiving treatment despite the cancer still being there. If this happened as a result of negligence, then you could claim.

With a cancer misdiagnosis, a doctor telling a patient they don’t have cancer when they do isn’t the only form of misdiagnosis. They could also be told that they have cancer when they don’t.

This could be an example of medical negligence if they undergo treatment that causes harm, such as chemotherapy. Should the patient be able to prove that they have suffered due to medical negligence such as this, then they could claim compensation.

To learn about the average payout for a cancer misdiagnosis, contact our advisors.

Average Payout For Cancer Misdiagnosis – Do I Need Evidence?

Yes, evidence is essential if you wish to receive a cancer misdiagnosis payout. We have featured below a few examples of evidence you might consider collecting to improve your chances of having your medical negligence claim settled:

A report from your doctor or a medical professional
Hospital records
Notes you have made regarding the pain or suffering you have experienced
Proof of any special damages, such as bank statements, invoices or receipts
Letters from your doctor or hospital
Referral information from your GP

After a cancer misdiagnosis, compensation amounts can be influenced by the evidence you have. If you have any questions about what evidence would work best for your specific claim, get in touch with our advisors at any time.

Continue reading to find out what is the average payout for cancer misdiagnosis claims.

What Is The Time Limit To Claim For A Cancer Misdiagnosis?

Typically, you have 3 years from the date you became aware that a misdiagnosis resulted from negligence if you are claiming for yourself.

This is set out in the Limitation Act 1980. However, there are some exceptions to this time limit. Exceptions include:

If you are under the age of 18 at the time of your cancer misdiagnosis, you have three years from the date you turned 18 to begin your claim. A litigation friend can do this for you while you’re under 18, and no time limit applies.
You are also given three years from the date you recover if you lack the mental capacity to begin a claim. While you’re unable to claim yourself, a litigation friend can do so for you. The time limit resets in the event that you regain the capacity to claim.

Contact our advisors to see if you can begin your cancer negligence claim today. Furthermore, they could connect you with a lawyer from our panel if you have a valid case.

How Legal Helpline Can Help You

The first step to seeking a cancer misdiagnosis payout is to let Legal Helpline help you. When you contact a member of the advisory team, they will:

Estimate how much your cancer misdiagnosis payout will be.
Discuss your expenses related to your cancer misdiagnosis to ensure that you are saving any evidence that can help prove these.
Advise you on what evidence could best support your claim for misdiagnosis of cancer compensation.
Assess your claim eligiblity.

Once you have your claim assessment, if you are eligible, you can be connected to one of the medical negligence solicitors from our panel. Our panel can:

Connect you to specialists, such as a physical therapist, to help you cope with the physical harm caused by a misdiagnosis of cancer.
Accurately value the harm you suffered, along with related expenses, to ensure that your cancer misdiagnosis payout reflects your suffering.
Help you through the clinical negligence claims process.
Handle all paperwork and documentation, including communicating with either NHS Resolution or a private medical provider’s insurer.
Make sure that your medical negligence claim is filed within the appropriate time limit.
Negotiate your settlement.
Apply for any interim payments to help you with essential costs, such as mortgage payments and groceries, while your settlement is being decided.

Furthermore, our panel operate on a No Win No Fee basis. We explain this below.

Cancer Misdiagnosis Payout – Claim With A No Win No Fee Solicitor

If you have evidence that you experienced medical negligence at a private healthcare facility or a publicly funded one such as the NHS, a misdiagnosis of cancer could potentially be claimed for. However, you would need to prove that a medically trained professional breached the duty of care they owed you and caused you avoidable harm.

However, you may be concerned about the costs of hiring legal help. If this is the case, we recommend you consider seeking a No Win No Fee solicitor.

A No Win No Fee solicitor could offer you a Conditional Fee Agreement, meaning you are not required to pay them upfront for their work. If they help you receive a cancer misdiagnosis payout in a successful claim, a success fee would be deducted from this for your solicitor. This is a legally capped percentage; it cannot be more than 25% of your compensation.

If you do not receive your payout, you would not have to make an out-of-pocket payment for their services, nor would you pay the success fee.

Please reach out to a member of our team to learn more about how to work with a No Win No Fee solicitor or for answers to questions such as ‘what could NHS cancer misdiagnosis payouts include?’. Furthermore, if your claim seems eligible, they may connect you to our panel of No Win No Fee solicitors.

Discuss the average payout for cancer misdiagnosis today:

Phone us on 0333 000 0729
Contact us online
Use the live chat on the bottom of the screen

Related Medical Negligence Claims

You may find the following links helpful:

And more guides:

I Was Harmed by GP Negligence, Could I Claim Compensation?
Wrong Medication Negligence Claims Guide
Walk-in Centre Negligence – No Win No Fee Claims Guide
Here you can find a guide which goes into detail about claiming in the case of cervical cancer misdiagnosis.

Thank you for reading our guide to the average payout for cancer misdiagnosis. If you have any questions or if you would like to find out if you can claim medical negligence compensation, please speak to a member of our advisory team.

A Guide To The Average Payout For A Cancer Misdiagnosis

Key Cancer Misdiagnosis Payout Takeaways

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