Medical Malpractice Lawsuit for Alleged Failure to Accurately Diagnose and Treat Lymphoma

In Willis v. Khatkhate, 373 Ill. App. 3d 495, 869 N.E.2d 222, 311 Ill. Dec. 548 (2007), the decedent's mother filed a medical malpractice complaint against decedent's physicians, nurse, and the hospital for wrongful death based on their failure to accurately diagnose and treat decedent's Hodgkin's lymphoma. The circuit court granted defendants' motions for summary judgment; the appellate court affirmed. On appeal, plaintiff argued that the allegations in her complaint established that Dr. Muthswamy made a differential diagnosis of decedent's Hodgkin's lymphoma and then he failed to properly treat the differential diagnosis of Hodgkin's Lymphoma. A differential diagnosis that is not chosen and/or treated as the ultimate diagnosis is a misdiagnosis by definition. Willis, 373 Ill. App. 3d at 505. Moreover, plaintiff alleged that Dr. Sansi, who performed a gallium scan, failed to communicate to Dr. Muthswamy the results of the screening test. In other words, plaintiff contended that this established a negligent treatment scenario, which is not immunized under section 6-106 of the Tort Immunity Act. Willis, 373 Ill. App. 3d at 504; 745 ILCS 10/6-106(b), (c), (d) (West 1998).