What is a misdiagnosis or delayed-diagnosis claim?
It is a malpractice claim alleging a provider failed to correctly or timely diagnose a condition — commonly cancer, heart attack, stroke, or infection — and that the delay caused a worse outcome than a timely diagnosis would have. You must prove both the diagnostic error and that it changed your prognosis.
What is the loss-of-chance doctrine?
Loss-of-chance allows recovery when negligence reduced your statistical chance of a better outcome, even if you cannot prove the delay more likely than not caused the harm. About half of US states allow proportional recovery (damages multiplied by the percentage of chance lost). Canada generally does not recognize it.
Why is causation so hard in misdiagnosis cases?
Because the underlying disease may have caused the harm regardless of the delay. The plaintiff must show that timely diagnosis would have led to a materially better outcome. If survival odds were already below 50%, a strict balance-of-probabilities jurisdiction may deny recovery entirely.
Which conditions are most often misdiagnosed?
The highest-value claims involve cancer (breast, lung, colon), heart attacks in atypical patients, strokes, pulmonary embolism, sepsis, and spinal infections. Delayed cancer diagnosis is among the most common and costly types of diagnostic malpractice.