PHILADELPHIA – A Philadelphia couple allege a veterans hospital failed to notify them of suspicious results of a test in 2015 that led to a stage four cancer diagnosis.
Horace Allenson Brantley and Zelma Brantley filed a complaint on March 26 in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania against United States of America, doing business as the Philadelphia Veterans Administration Medical Center, citing the Federal Tort Claims Act.
According to the complaint, Horace Allenson Brantley had a CT angiography of his chest taken on Dec. 15, 2015, at the Philadelphia VAMC to evaluate him for pulmonary embolism. The suit states that pulmonary embolism was ruled out, but the interpreting radiologist found two suspicious nodules -yet failed to notify the plaintiff of the results.
The suit states on Oct. 10, 2016, Horace Brantley had an X-ray at the Philadelphia VAMC that showed nodules and the defendant again failed to notify the plaintiff or the ordering physician of the results.
On Aug. 8, 2017, the suit states the plaintiff had another X-ray taken and abnormal results were present, but the defendant failed to notify the plaintiff or the ordering physician. On Jan. 9, 2018, the suit states the plaintiff was admitted for another CT scan of his thorax and numerous nodules were found. The plaintiff was diagnosed with stage four cancer and in March 2019, was placed in hospice care, the suit states.
The defendant is accused of negligence.
The plaintiffs are seeking all reasonable sums due, attorney fees and court costs. They are represented by Thomas R. Kline and Regan S. Safiet of Kline & Specter PC in Philadelphia.
U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania case number 2:19-CV-01279-NIQA