Facts

Claimant was a 73-year-old mother and grandmother, who was worked up for shortness of breath by Respondents in December 2017. As part of the workup, Respondents ordered a CT scan of the chest, which revealed a cavitary lesion in the Claimant's left lung. Claimant underwent subsequent CT scans of the chest with Respondents in January 2018, March 2018, and August 2018, which again showed the same cavitary lesion in the left lung. During that period of time, the lesion was growing in size and changing in appearance. However, the Respondents' radiologist noted that the lesion was stable and had decreased in size between March 2018 and August 2018. No further workup to rule out malignancy was completed by Respondents after August 2018.

In April 2021, Claimant presented to the Respondents' emergency department with complaints of three days of worsening abdominal pain. A CT scan of Claimant's abdomen, pelvis and thorax was completed on that date, revealing a 6.7 cm mass with central necrosis suspicious for neoplasm in the lower lobe of the left lung.

Claimant subsequently underwent a PET scan and the left lower lobe mass was found to be intensely FDG-avid, as was the subcarinal lymphadenopathy, which was highly suspicious for metastatic bronchogenic carcinoma. Claimant subsequently underwent a CT-guided biopsy of her left lung and surgical pathology from that biopsy was consistent with moderately to poorly differentiated squamous cell carcinoma, staged at T3N2M0 (stage IIIB).

PLAINTIFF'S CONTENTIONS: Claimant contended that the chest CT scans between December 2017 and August 2018 revealed a lesion that was changing in appearance and growing in size, which required further workup to rule out malignancy. Claimant further contended that there was a clear opportunity to diagnose Claimant's lung cancer in 2018, at which time Claimant would have had a T1 lesion, carrying a cure rate of approximately 65-70%. The negligence of the Respondents resulted in a delay of almost three years in diagnosing squamous cell lung cancer and, at the time of diagnosis, Claimant had a regionally advanced cancer with a poor prognosis.

Result

The parties mediated the case with the Honorable Steven R. Denton (Ret.) and the case settled shortly after mediation for $800,000.