Sued for wrong diagnosis and treatment

From malaysiakini

Housewife sues gov't for RM7.5m
Humayun Kabir | 14 May, 09 3:25pm
A 54-year-old housewife is suing the government a whopping RM7.5 million in damages for a wrong diagnosis on cancer, which lead to the unnecessary removal of her left breast.

Silvarany Thangavellu of Batu Gajah would seek RM5 million in general damages, and RM2.5 million in exemplary damages and damages for pain, suffering, embarrassment, trauma and interest and cost.

The case was mentioned in the High Court in Ipoh today.

Silvarany had filed the case on Feb 15, 2008 and is suing Dr L Vasu Pillai and director of the Ipoh General Hospital, the Health Ministry and the Malaysian government for medical negligence.

Her counsel, A Magesan of A Sivanesan & Co, said he would file the notice in court next week to prepare the case for hearing in court.

He said that his client was admitted into the Ipoh General Hospital for a stomach problem and her uterus was removed following the discovery of a fibroid growth.

On her subsequent medical visit on May 16, 2005, she was informed by Vasu that her pathology report showed she has cancer in her left breast.

It was surgically removed in an operation, performed by Vasu on Sept 7, 2005. She was discharged five days later.

A month after, she went for a follow-up medical check-up and was told by Dr Stephen Jacob, a doctor in the Ipoh General Hospital, that she was misdiagnosed for breast cancer and her left breast was wrongly removed.

Demonstrates the importance of ensuring samples are properly labeled and results are cross checked if they belong to the patient. The above report is likely to have omitted important details.

How can breast cancer be diagnosed if no biopsies were taken from the breast?? Why did the patient accept the diagnosis if the breast were not a concern? If indeed there was a mass and the pathology report indicated malignancy, are the attending doctors to be blamed for expeditiously removing the breast? If subsequent pathology of the breast tissue showed no malignancy, were the operating doctors at fault? If there is to be any finger pointing, perhaps it should be directed at the pathologist, should it not?

It will be interesting to know more details.