I think my mother in law should file a medical malpractice suit.?

[avikar76]

I will try to stick to the facts that I know.About 5 years ago they seen some scarring on her liver, and did nothing about it.She was diagnosed with hep c around the same time.She was put on interferon, she was on this for 3 years.She was in her doctors office one day and heard the assistant yelling at the doctor saying she can't be on this medicine any longer and he has to do something different.Within 5 minutes of her hearing that, the doctor came in and said she was in remisiion and did not need any more interferon shots, this was about 2 years ago.She has had problems since, pitting edema, swollen spleen, swolen liver..etc. Last year she had memory loss and confusion from the ammonia build up in the liver, she was put on medication to flush it out.In the last few weeks she was diagnosed with water in her belly and again the confusion was setting in,she was sent to the hospital, the hospital kept her for 5 days and sent her home saying she was just fat, she gained 30 lbs in a month and can not fit into her shoes.She can't even eat because of the swollen spleen, how can this be normal weight gain? Since she was released her liver doctor called her and told her she was never in remission and now has cirrohsis stage 4.Besides trying to get her well, which from what I read is not going to happen, is there any chance of a lawsuit here? She has never gotten a straight answer out of any of her doctors as to what is going on.

[jorel]

Sounds like a lawsuit to me. Consult one of those medical malpractice lawyers and if you have a winnable case they will take the case with no money up front and take a percentage of the winnings. Remember no amount of money can replace good health . For what your mother n law has and is still suffering through she deserves to be compensated.

[norwyn]

It is hard to prove medical malpractice. Have to show that the injury (cirhossis and eventual death) were the cause of the doctor's actions and his actions were wrong considering all the factors. Have to prove it is pretty gross malpractice, not just an error or wrong diagnosis.

I am not a doctor but weight gain, rapid, and being swollen can be from fluid retention. Can't get on shoes, feel and legs hurt, can get around all parts of the body. Congestive heart failure is fluid build up around the heart. That might also be in the legs (edema) and sometimes a diuretic is required to reduce it.

for your MIL you have not only the doctor but also the hospital so it would seem that there is a problem with diagnosis. Or perhaps what she tells you they said is close but maybe not totally accurate or they tell her only what they feel they need to.

Is there a doctor who will say that she was treated improperly and that the treatment caused her damages to the liver? I doubt it. I would wish you good luck, but I doubt it will help.

You can get a personal injury lawyer and see if they would takethe case on a contingency basis. If not, then it is not a good case. If they will, check aobut expenses and how that is covered. If you don't have to pay unless you win, then can take 1/4 or 1/3 of the final result. Expenses often come out of the individual's pocket not the lawyer's, win or lose.

I am sorry to hear that she is having such a hard time. I have a fatty liver (there is fat throughout the body when that happens) and sometimes there are medications that help one thin but may harm another. Perhaps this is what the doctor was telling her though - that she had fat in her tissues and liver was fatty, as was all the body. Is the current liver doctor the same as she had before? Maybe needs a new opinion, take all the tests, etc. or have her sign releases. Sometimes we don't know what will get us first -- cirrhosis, cancer, kdiney failure, heart attack, stroke, etc. When we don't take care of our bodies, they get worse as we age. I wish her luck and that she can get through this and that some treatment will help. I wish I had better news on either front. I don't. God bless you and your family.

[langford59]

No, your mother does not have a lawsuit here and her doctor did nothing wrong. I will tell you why. Your mother has the hep C virus that slowly destroys the liver. Slowly means it can take up to 20 years or more. Treatment is available to try and get the viral load down low so that it doesn't destroy the liver. Your mothers doctor did exactly that, but it hasn't worked which unfortunately happens to a lot of people. Your mother has developed cirrhosis from the hep C virus attacking her liver. She did not respond to treatment even though another doctor thought she was on the treatment too long. Her doctor probably thought he was going to keep trying to get that viral load down and that's why he had her in treatment for so long. Many people do not respond to treatment or the viral load will go down for awhile and then come back up again. The higher the viral load, the more it will destroy the liver.

Hep C is the number one reason for people needing liver transplants in America. It causes scarring in the liver which is called cirrhosis. Eventually, it will totally destroy the liver and a transplant is the only option one has for staying alive. No doctor can stop this from happening if treatment is not effective and there is nothing else they can do about it.

All the symptoms you describe is typical of cirrhosis. I know because I had cirrhosis along with all those symptoms that your mother is experiencing. It's just part of the disease. They can give her diuretics for the water retention and even drain or "tap" her if the swelling in the abdomen becomes too much. They can give her Lactulose or Xifaxan to help lower her ammonia levels. Enlarged liver and spleen happen with cirrhosis. At first the liver will enlarge, but as the disease progresses, it will start to go in the other direction and become smaller as it dies more. It also affects blood clotting. A person will bruise easy and can bleed internally from unwanted varices (veins that form from cirrhosis). Varices can be banded through endoscopy to greatly reduce the risk of bleeding internally.

I agree with the doctor that said she was never in remission. She didn't respond to the treatment, but there is nothing a doctor can do if that happens. You can't sue a doctor because a treatment didn't work. It would be like suing a somone having cancer because they were given chemo and it didn't take away the cancer.

Unfortunately, your mother is probably going to need a liver transplant in the future. The hep C virus will just keep attacking the liver until it completely destroys it. I have talked to a lot of people who have hep C that received transplants. Even if they do get a transplant, that doesn't mean the hep C will go away. It can also attack the new liver. Some people are fortunate and this does not happen while some are not so fortunate. There is just no way you have a lawsuit here. Your mother has cirrhosis from hep C and this is what it does to a body. The doctors can really do very little for it other than try to treat it (which he did with your mother) and treat the symptoms. There is no cure.

Your mother does need a good hepatologist to treat her disease since they specialize in liver disease. I wish her the best.

[osmont]

It is very important to know that what you think or feel means nothing to anybody. It is up to your mother-in-law to determined what to do.If she wants to sue or not sue it is her decision nobody else's. If she opens the door and ask your advice you can tell her how you feel. Another point while you are thinking about all the money and the better life she can have, what do you know about tort reform that is probity going on in your state. So far the most any state is going to pay if you win the law suit is $300,000.00 even if the jury awards her 25 million. we all been tricked thinking about how stupid it was for a lady to get 25 million for burning herself by putting a hot cup of coffee between her legs. the lawyers and business twisted that into limits to everybody no matter what the law suit is. They win we the people lose. check it out for your self. South Carolina $200,000.00 limit, Georgia $300.000.00 limit, Texas $250,000.00 limit that is all l can remember at this writing.