Consent to treatment

Claim: The claimant was dissatisfied with surgery that was performed to remove a potentially cancerous lesion.  She brought a claim stating that she had been advised to undergo a more extensive procedure than was necessary, was unaware of the extent of the tissue that was to be removed and was not warned of the risk of scarring. 

Weightmans’ investigation and action: We established that surgery had been expertly performed, and that microscopic analysis of the tissue had revealed the condition was benign. We then examined the case records, which were very detailed and included a diagram that had been used by the surgeon to illustrate the extent of contemplated surgery.

The surgeon could also recall details of the pre-operative information he had provided, because the procedure was uncommon. On the basis of this evidence, we obtained a supportive expert report from an eminent surgeon. 

Result: Claim successfully defended.