Boyes Turner’s medical negligence solicitors secured an admission of liability and £50,000 interim payment for a client who suffered additional injury and disability as a result of GP delays in referring her for further investigation of signs of bowel cancer. GP failure to make urgent cancer pathway referral after positive FIT test Our client had a complex medical history involving multiple health conditions, including sliding hiatus hernia, CRPS (chronic widespread pain), diabetes, asthma, anaemia, diverticulosis and irritable bowel syndrome. During investigations for abdominal symptoms her GP ordered a faecal immunochemical test (FIT). This is an investigation which checks for traces of blood in a patient’s faeces, which could be a sign of bowel cancer. The FIT test result was positive, which mandated an urgent referral for further investigation under the lower GI (gastrointestinal) two week wait cancer referral pathway. The result was received and reviewed by a GP but no referral was made, even though she was seen very soon afterwards for other checks and investigations by two GPs at the same surgery. Delay leads to bowel perforation, emergency surgery and cancer diagnosis If our client had been referred urgently for further investigation in response to the positive FIT test, this would have led to a colonoscopy and identification of her tumour. Instead, she was eventually referred ten months later to a gastroenterologist for investigation of her ongoing abdominal pain and new change of bowel habit. Over the next four months she underwent gastroenterological investigations and attended A&E on multiple occasions but her condition deteriorated and she suffered a bowel perforation. She needed emergency surgical treatment with laparotomy and subtotal colectomy with end ileostomy. During surgery a malignant moderately differentiated T3N1 tumour was removed from her colon. She developed post-operative sepsis and needed an extended stay in the intensive care unit (ICU). She was left with a stoma and has needed extensive treatment for problems with a fistula, abscesses, infections, kidney disease and PTSD. Our client’s injury and resulting disability has had a significant impact on her daily life. She has impaired mobility and has had to move to a bungalow as she can no longer climb stairs. She needs help with daily activities, such as cooking and shopping, and is no longer able to provide care to her husband. Claim leads to admission of liability and £50,000 interim payment We investigated our client’s claim and served a letter of notification on the two GPs who had failed to make the urgent cancer referral shortly after receiving her positive FIT result. NHS Resolution responded with a full admission of liability which enabled the claim to proceed on the basis of the first doctor’s negligent failure to make the urgent referral when the positive FIT result was received. Our client’s urgent needs will be met with a £50,000 interim payment, whilst we work with our experts to value the claim in preparation for settlement negotiations. If you or a family member have suffered severe injury as a result of medical negligence or have been contacted by HSSIB/MNSI or NHS Resolution you can talk to a solicitor, free and confidentially, for advice about how to respond or make a claim by contacting us.
