Legal Question in Medical Malpractice in Wisconsin

Re: misdiagnosis

I cannot tell you whether you have a meritorious case, or not, based upon the facts you have related. In order to have a case that you can successfully pursue, you must be able to prove that the doctor was negligent in failing to diagnose your cancer earlier, and, if you can prove negligence, you must also prove that the outcome would have been different with an earlier diagnosis. The second issue, the "cause" issue, is often a difficult one in cancer cases because it requires an oncologist to say, convincingly, that your outcome would have been different with an earlier diagnosis. Unless the delay in diagnosis was significant, you may not be able to prove that the failure to diagnose the cancer earlier was a cause of injury to you.

The statute of limitations for medical malpractice cases is three years from the date of injury or three years from the date of the last negligent act if there was a continuing course of negligent care. That means that you must file a case within three years or your claim will not be able to be pursued.