QuestionMy mother was involved in a car accident in Jan 09 - baically was a pedestrian crossing the road. The driving is being persued for careless driving. My mother was injured at the time -head/facial and ribs. She has since been diagnosed with terminal cancer in her head and chest. She as i do beleive this was brought about by the trauma of the accident. Our solicitor states this cannot be proven. I would appreciate your opnion on the matter.
thanx W
AnswerDear William,
I am so sorry to hear the news of your mother’s condition and suffering. It was bad enough to undergo the trauma of the accident and the painful injuries. But now with the diagnosis of terminal cancer, she must be suffering both physically and emotionally. I am happy that you hired a solicitor, since he or she will be able to guide you and your Mother through this insurance claims process.
The problem in attributing some adverse physical condition to an accident is that one must have medical proof. While it is true that the proof does not have to be to a scientific standard, one still must obtain the opinion of a qualified medical doctor who will state that it is more likely than not that this trauma either caused or exacerbated the cancer.
That “more likely than not” standard of proof is a lot less than a scientific-based standard of proof, so you might be able to find a doctor who would make such an opinion. But chances are not high on that because there is a real lack of medical support to connect trauma with cancer. Part of the problem, in my opinion, is that the research focuses ONLY on the physical aspects of bodily injury from accident trauma, and ignores the emotional distress caused by accidents. So be sure to include all of the emotional distress your mother suffered when seeking a positive connection between the accident and cancer. ALSO, focus on exacerbation of an asymptomatic condition: did the accident cause latent cancer cells to start spreading?
Here are those two issues laid out for you to show what you might focus on in your discussions with doctors:
#1. Ask about BOTH the physical trauma AND the emotional trauma of the accident and the stress induced by that accident and all she had to deal with. You will note that all of the topics cited below talk about ONLY the physical trauma; not one of them mentions the emotional and mental stressors that will act upon a victim of an accident. So do some research on stress as a contributing cause of cancer. And ride THAT horse instead of just the physical trauma. Does that make sense, William?
#2. Ask about whether or not the physical trauma combined with the mental distress could have made worse a preexisting asymptomatic cancerous condition. Was the cancer there, but inactive and the trauma made it active and able to spread? That is a different question that causation in the first place, and if a doctor were to agree with that concept, then it is a compensable item of damages for your Mother.
But even for this reduced kind of proof, you still will have difficulty, if the online sites are at all accurate in their assessment that there is little medical support to tie trauma to cancer. Still, I WOULD NOT GIVE UP until you have exhausted all possible medical sources for seeking an opinion.
And remember, you need ONLY ONE DOCTOR who is qualified to testify. That gets you past a motion and allows the testimony to come to the jury, AND the insurance company knows that once this issue gets before a jury with a terminal cancer issue, ANYTHING could happen. So just one doctor’s opinion will get the issue before the jury, and once you are in that position, then the defense will want to settle because they do not want to defend against a nice woman that was struck down by their insured. So just get that ONE DOCTOR to make an opinion that it is more likely than not true the trauma caused or exacerbated the cancer.
The first guess I have is that the general practitioners who treat your Mother will be a bit shy to make such a connection since that is not their area of expertise. So you can understand why they do not want to stick their neck(s) out by making an opinion for which there is not much medical support. BUT DO NOT GIVE UP even if they refuse to help you.
Instead, seek out some doctor who makes a living being on the cutting edge of issues. My suggestion is that you either lead the way or get your attorney to lead the way and seek out some university research doctors who would be interested in the topic of trauma having some impact upon cancers. Get on the phone and do NOT GIVE UP until you find some doctor who will take an interest. Each time you are turned down, then be sure to ask for referrals to a doctor who might be interested in this topic.
Do NOT limit yourself to the UK. Expert opinion in the USA or other countries can help your Mother’s case. True, the insurer knows that they are not a big threat to testify because of the difference, but in a big enough case, they might be scared that one could take their depositions and seek admission of their testimony in your country. Just another arrow in your quiver. Remember: you do not have to actually use these experts: the main thing is to make them appear to be a credible threat so that the insurance company will want to pay.
Here is some reading material for you and your solicitor. Remember, not one of these opinions includes consideration of the emotional or mental stressors that came out to act upon your Mother’s life. They are all focused ONLY upon physical trauma and its impact. So do not become discouraged by some of these conclusions.
“In the absence of positive evidence that a single injury can cause cancer, the tendency is growing to award compensation to persons (particularly employees) with cancers alleged to have originated in trauma, even cancers which are generally conceded to be congenital in origin.
“Experimental attempts to induce cancer through trauma have been unsuccessful or doubtful in result. War-wounded persons, boxers and railroad accident victims have no higher incidence of cancer than other groups.
“Physicians and others in a position to educate the public should strive to dispel the error that cancer following injury is demonstrably or even probably the cause.”
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC1577508/
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC1577508/?page=1
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC1577508/?page=2
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC1577508/?page=3
Stressors:
http://medical-dictionary.thefreedictionary.com/stressors
Stress Causes Cancer -New Research Finds:
“While it has long been suspected that stress was a contributing factor in cancer development, U.S. medical scientists have now discovered the stress hormone epinephrine makes prostate and breast cancer cells resistant to cell death.
“Researchers at the Wake Forest University School of Medicine are the first to report that emotional stress contributes to the development of cancer and might also reduce the effectiveness of cancer treatments.
“The study, led by Dr. George Kulik, an assistant professor of cancer biology, was designed to determine whether there is a direct link between stress hormones and changes in cancer cells.”
http://www.dailygalaxy.com/my_weblog/2007/04/stress_causes_c.html
http://www.nytimes.com/2005/11/29/health/29canc.html?_r=1
I hope that the underlying disease can be dealt with, and that your Mother has a recovery. But if not, I want you to find just one doctor who can support this connection between the accident and cancer on the basis of either or both the physical aspects of trauma and the emotional distress caused by the accident.
I trust that my extra time here has produced some information that has been of value to you, and thus I would respectfully request that you take the time to locate the FEEDBACK FORM on this site and leave some feedback for me.
Best wishes.
Dr. Settlement, J.D. (Juris Doctor)
http://www.SettlementCentral.Com
