Our Client was a 33 year old gentleman who had been suffering with sharp frontal lobe/retro-orbital headaches since 2009 which had gradually been growing worse in severity.  His symptoms grew to include cluster type headaches which could occur up to 40 times a day.  He also experienced lacrimation (a watering of the eyes).

The Claimant brought a case against Sheffield Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust alleging a delay in referral to a Neurologist.  The allegation was essentially an administrative delay regarding a referral that had not been acted upon.  The Claimant was referred on 12 July 2016 to a Consultant Neurologist (specialising in headaches) but was not seen by the specialist until 20 November 2017 who referred him to an Endocrinologist, who noted abnormal hormonal tests and pituitary function.  After a pituitary focussed scan, he was eventually diagnosed with pituitary adenoma and raised growth hormones and IGF-1 levels and acromegaly in April 2018. He underwent an operation to remove the pituitary adenoma on 16 July 2018.   After the excision of the tumour the Claimant’s symptoms largely resolved.

The Claimant averred that he suffered unnecessary pain and headaches over 12 months which he would not have suffered if diagnosis had been made earlier.  His symptoms were so debilitating that he was unable to drive and work as normal.  The pain inhibited his ability to care for his newborn son which affected his ability to initially bond with him.  He was unable to attend social events due to the pain and lengthy attacks of severe headaches.  His appearance also started to change and he developed a larger face and hands to the extent that he could not remove his rings. This was subsequently linked to the diagnosis of acromegaly.

Expert evidence was obtained from a Consultant Neurologist who was of the opinion that it was likely the diagnosis of acromegaly would have been made one year earlier if the referral had not been unduly delayed.

Thankfully there were no long term effects as a result of the delay in diagnosis and treatment as can sometimes be the case.

The Defendant however strongly denied liability.  They denied any error had occurred and argued that an earlier pituitary scan would not have a made a difference to the overall outcome for the Claimant.

After the Defendant initially would not engage in negotiation, settlement was eventually agreed for £17,000 without the need to issue court proceedings.