A doctor’s failure to communicate essential information to a patient can be as harmful as prescribing the wrong medication or botching a surgical procedure. According to a medical malpractice lawsuit filed in Cook County, Illinois, a Lyons man died because his doctor failed to inform him that he had bladder cancer.

Edward Hines had gone to see to Dr. Alan Sadah, a urologist at an Oak Park clinic, for treatment of a bladder tumor. After removing the tumor, Dr. Sadah told Hines that he was free of cancer. One week after the 2011 procedure, a pathologist’s report showed that Hines still had bladder cancer. In her lawsuit, Hines’s daughter claims that Dr. Sadah never told her father.

Hines did not discover his condition until a year later when he went back to the clinic complaining of pain and learned he had invasive bladder cancer. He died at the age of 58 in 2013, after chemotherapy and surgery to remove his bladder and prostate.

Hines’ daughter says that, once his father knew about the cancer, he did everything medically possible to treat it. She believes the outcome could have been different if he had not missed a year of treatment while the cancer spread.

In documents filed in court in response to the lawsuit, Dr. Sadah presents a different view of events. He claims he told Hines that he had cancer but that Hines failed to follow up. He also says Hines did not ask for the pathology report.

A physician Hines hired to review his treatment wrote that Dr. Sadah should have warned his patient about the high recurrence rate of bladder cancer and the need for vigilant monitoring and treatment. The reviewing physician also wrote that patients should be notified when a pathology report discloses serious problems and an appointment should be set up for them.

A trial may be needed to decide whether Dr. Sadah’s version can be believed or whether Hines was kept in the dark about his diagnosis until it was too late.

If your health or the health of a loved one has been adversely affected by a doctor’s failure to inform you of a condition, or by any other type of negligent treatment, you should seek the compensation you deserve. Ryan Ryan & Viglione has represented clients in all types of medical malpractice suits. For a consultation, call (847)244-1436 today.