Philadelphia County (Pa) Court of Common Pleas
In reviewing the mammogram of a 36-year-old woman, a radiologist noted a cluster of calcifications in her right breast, but did not consider them suspicious. Two years later, the patient underwent a mammogram with another radiologist, who noted the calcifications as benign.
The following year another mammogram showed a 2-cm dense lymph node. The patient later claimed she felt a mass under her right armpit and in her right breast. Physicians discovered both the lymph node and breast mass were malignant. As a result, the woman underwent a mastectomy and chemotherapy.
The patient later sued the first 2 radiologists, claiming that her chance of survival would have been 95% had the defendants ordered biopsies.
- The jury awarded the plaintiff $4 million.