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Medicolegal Pitfalls in Breast Cancer Diagnosis and Management

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Management of Breast Diseases

Abstract

Breast cancer is the most common cancer in women [1], and failure to diagnose it in a timely manner has been documented as the most common reason for a successful medical malpractice claim [2, 3]. Knowledge of the common allegations made when a malpractice suit is filed for failure to diagnose breast cancer can provide insight into the risk management of a physician’s practice and simultaneously minimize errors in patient care. Many physicians are unaware of the legal process involved in a malpractice suit until it affects them or a close colleague. At this point, an objective perspective is often impossible. Nonetheless, it is inevitable that many, if not most, physicians will find themselves a defendant in a medical malpractice suit at some point in their career for a less-than-perfect patient outcome, whether medical negligence has occurred or not. This chapter is intended to outline the common allegations of misdiagnosis or mismanagement of breast cancer, to review the process of legal proceedings common to a medical malpractice suit, to review the issues likely to arise in the defense of a case, and to provide recommendations on the steps to take when facing malpractice litigation.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Michigan State University, 632 West Fee Hall, East Lansing, MI, 48824, USA

    Janet R. Osuch

  2. National Human Genome Research Institute, National Institutes of Health, 31 Center Drive B1B55, Bethesda, MD, 20892, USA

    Vence L. Bonham

Authors
  1. Janet R. Osuch
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  2. Vence L. Bonham
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Correspondence to Janet R. Osuch .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. Breast Care Center National Naval Medical Center, Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences, 4301 Jones Bridge Rd., Bethesda, MD, 20814, USA

    Ismail Jatoi (Head) (Head)

  2. Women’s Hospital, University of Frankfurt, Theodor-Stern-Kai 7, 60590, Frankfurt, Germany

    Manfred Kaufmann (Breast Unit Director) (Breast Unit Director)

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Osuch, J.R., Bonham, V.L. (2010). Medicolegal Pitfalls in Breast Cancer Diagnosis and Management. In: Jatoi, I., Kaufmann, M. (eds) Management of Breast Diseases. Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-540-69743-5_33

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-540-69743-5_33

  • Publisher Name: Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg

  • Print ISBN: 978-3-540-69742-8

  • Online ISBN: 978-3-540-69743-5

  • eBook Packages: MedicineMedicine (R0)

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