There are many women who have suffered from cervical cancer misdiagnosis that could have been prevented. Pap smear tests, for these women, came back negative when they should have come back positive for cancerous or pre-cancerous changes. Unfortunately, many of these women developed cervical cancer that could have been caught earlier had their tests been read correctly.

The healthcare community is not sure why cervical cancer misdiagnosis occurrences are happening after negative Pap smear exam results, but many believe it may be linked to the results being improperly analyzed. Medical labs may be making these mistakes due to technicians being overworked, as numerous Pap smear exams and other medical tests arrive for processing on a daily basis.

According to the CDC, Pap smear exams were ordered or provided in almost 17.4 million healthcare facilities and in almost 3.5 million hospital outpatient visits in 2014. This massive workload may be overwhelming for most lab technicians who may misread or not correctly analyze the cervical cells.

This often results in women being diagnosed with Stage III or IV cancer much later, because the patient was not previously aware she needed cancer treatment.

Overview of Cervical Cancer Misdiagnosis

Class action lawyers are reviewing different product liability claims against medical labs who analyze Pap smear exams but who allegedly have produced cancer misdiagnosis cases.

Cervical cancer is one of the most preventable forms of cancers due to the successful screening of Pap smear exams, with the American Cancer Society stating the most invasive cervical cancers are often found in women who did not routinely undergo this medical test. Pap smear exams collect cells from the cervix which are then analyzed by medical labs under a microscope.

These medical tests are done to find any indication of cervical cancer or other cervical health problems potentially plaguing the patient. If cervical cancer evidence is found, women often find themselves undergoing further testing with procedures like endocervical scraping to collect more comprehensive samples.

Young women were initially advised to undergo Pap smear exams when they either turned 18 or became sexually active, depending on which occurred earlier. The American Cancer Society recently released new guidelines, with the recommended ages now between 21 to 29 and that patients should undergo this test every three years.

Before Pap smear exams were invented, cervical cancer was one of the most commonly reported causes of death for women in the United States. The American Cancer Society estimated that of the approximately 12,240 women who will be diagnosed with invasive cervical cancer in the United States in 2018, 4,170 women will die from the disease.

While Pap smear exams are great tools for detecting early signs of this disease, recent reports of cervical cancer misdiagnosis have raised major concerns in the United States.

One woman has reportedly already died from her cervical cancer misdiagnosis in 2011, even though her 2008 Pap smear test came back negative. Her husband later sued the medical lab for failing to identify the signs of cervical cancer, claiming this negligent mistake caused his wife’s death. The man won the cervical cancer misdiagnosis lawsuit in 2014, with the jury awarding him $15.8 million.

Class action lawyers are encouraging women who were diagnosed with late stage cervical cancer when their Pap smear exam tested negative to seek out if they are eligible to recover their own damages.