By some estimates, women who were given IVF treatments were twice as likely to develop cancer as women who were not involved in the fertilization treatments.

The study involved 19,000 women who received IVF and 6,000 who did not during the 1980s and 1990s. 30 women in the IVF group developed invasive ovarian cancer while 31 were diagnosed with borderline ovarian tumors.

Statistical Problems

Some question whether the sample size was adequate to allow researchers to draw concrete conclusions. Furthermore, in many cases, the cancerous tumors were merely borderline. Nevertheless, additional studies are needed to discover the nature of the connection between IVF and ovarian cancer.

In addition to statistics, misdiagnosis of cancer presents an additional issue with reporting cancer connections. Patient study incidents (PCIs) show that failure to properly diagnose and treat in a timely fashion occurred 155 times out of 1000 in hospitalized patients.

With the alarming frequency of cancer misdiagnosis in hospitals, it's no wonder that these incidents lead to medical malpractice claims.

An Attorney Can Help

If you or a loved one has suffered injury because of a cancer misdiagnosis, contact an experienced medical malpractice attorney. A medical malpractice lawyer can assess your case and help you get the compensation for medical bills, lost wages, and pain and suffering you deserve. For more information, contact an attorney today.

Uterine scars from a cesarean section can essentially function as fault lines in the organ's structural integrity. In some cases, the pressure caused by vaginal delivery can cause the scar to break open, leading to birth injuries such as uterine rupture.

According to a study published in the New England Journal of Medicine, women who delivered their first child via cesarean section and then delivered a second via vaginal delivery were approximately three times more likely to suffer a uterine rupture than women who delivered both children vaginally. The risk is even higher for women whose labor is induced during the second delivery.

The danger is further compounded for older women and those who begin their pregnancies obese or overweight. Exceptionally large babies - especially those weighing over 8 pounds, 13 ounces - also decrease the chance that women will have a successful vaginal birth after c-section.

Although the risk of uterine rupture is present, it is relatively small. Still, the consequences of a uterine rupture are catastrophic - the injury usually means death for both mother and baby.

Approximately 20 to 40 percent of women who attempt a vaginal birth after c-section will not be able to complete their labor and will have to undergo a second c-section surgery.

However, for many women, a subsequent vaginal delivery can be a much safer option. Vaginal deliveries have fewer complications than c-sections, including lowered risks of infection and blood loss. Further, the recovery time after a vaginal delivery is much lower than after a repeat c-section. Vaginal deliveries may also be a better option for women who are planning large families, as repeat c-sections tend to become increasingly more complicated.

The birth of a child is one of the most important occasions in a woman's life. However, it can also be one of the most dangerous. It's important for women to discus all of their options with their doctors well before their baby arrives.

While this may sound like some gruesome anomaly that you'd only hear about on the evening news, surgical errors are becoming ever more common. According to the Joint Commission - an organization that is responsible for accrediting hospitals around the country - 40 operations on the wrong body part occur in hospitals and clinics on a weekly basis. And those are just the never events that the Joint Commission knows about: Since half of the states in the country do not require medical facilities to report these surgical accidents, the true amount of never events is unknown.

In order to reduce the amount of never events that occur, medical facilities have adopted policies such as:

• having surgeons sign their initials with permanent marker on the body part that should be operated on prior to bringing the patient into the operating room
• creating a surgical checklist for all operations
• creating documentation that outlines the patient's medical history - such as pre-existing conditions and infections
• having a "time out," where the surgeon and the patient, along with nurses and anesthesiologists, discuss the procedure to ensure that the operation is done correctly

Despite these precautions, however, the problem of never events is not necessarily getting solved. According to a survey conducted by the American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons (AAOS), even though medical facilities around the country have instituted a "Sign Your Site" initiative, the amount of wrong-site operations has actually increased.

Effects on Patients

Being on the receiving end of a never event can leave patients feeling physically and mentally violated. Although medical professionals can go a long way toward mending the doctor-patient relationship by fully disclosing their mistakes and apologizing for them, in some cases, patients need to be compensated for their injuries. Patients who have undergone this unfortunate experience should contact an experienced personal injury attorney to find out their rights.

A recent study by Consumer Reports may illustrate the role that pharmacies play in these types of injuries: After visiting consumer pharmacies in a number of chain stores - CVS, Target, Walgreens, Costco and Walmart - the magazine's researchers found that four out of five of the pharmacies did not provide medication guides to patients that are required by the federal government. In addition, the study found that for some chains, the information provided to customers about the medications ordered varied from one store to the next - with some stores not giving out any information at all.

Some ways that consumers can exercise vigilance - which can save them from serious medication errors - include asking questions about the medications they are being given and keeping a list of the medications that they take. In some cases, consumers can make lifestyle changes - such changing their diet and exercise habits - that can reduce the need for certain medications all together.

But no matter how many precautions a patient might take, medical errors can still occur. If you have been injured by a medication error made by a physician or a pharmacist, you may be able to get compensated for this negligence. By contacting a qualified personal injury attorney, you may be able to receive help with your medical bills or, if a loved one has died because of a medication error, compensation for the wrongful death.

Birth injuries range from mild to severe. Some of the minor injuries are bruising and swelling from passage through the birth canal or the use of forceps. More serious injuries can sometimes occur that result in broken bones, loss of arms and hand mobility and brain damage.

Some of the most common causes of birth injury are:

• The baby's position. "Breech birth" is when the baby is in an unusual position when the baby's bottom is down or traverse (in a sideways position). These positions make vaginal birth risky.
• The size of the baby and the size of the mother's pelvis. When a baby is more than eight pounds birth injury is more likely. On the other extreme premature babies are also more susceptible to injury.
• Difficult labor. Prolonged labor can lead to oxygen deprivation.

A baby's shoulders may impair its passage through the birth canal depending on size of the baby and the mother's pelvis. The baby may then suffer from Erb's Palsy where a group of nerves that control movement in the arms and hands is injured and causes weakness or paralysis in the arms or hands.

Delay in ordering a cesarean section during prolonged labor can lead to oxygen deprivation, which can cause brain damage, Cerebral Palsy or death.

If a physician failed to recognize these factors and your child suffered a birth injury, speak to an attorney in your area who is experienced at handling these difficult cases. An attorney can evaluate whether a birth injury was caused by negligence. If a doctor or nurse was negligent in the care and birth of your child, an attorney can help you seek the compensation you deserve.

When to Question Your Doctor or Seek a Second Opinion

Health advocates now advise patients to fully question their physicians and to not be a "good patient" by settling for whatever the doctor tells them. Patients are encouraged to be a respectable annoyance, if necessary.

If medical jargon is used or if a patient does not fully understand what the nurse or doctor is advising, then the patient should not hesitate to ask for a plainer or fuller explanation. If a health provider seems annoyed or unconcerned, then the patient may consider seeing someone else, or remind the nurse or doctor that it is their health at stake and that they have every right to be fully advised.

In a situation where the patient's medical condition is serious, it is not only helpful, but even essential, that the patient seek a second opinion. Another physician may come up with a completely different diagnosis or procedure that was not considered by the first doctor, and which may save the patient's life. For instance, a doctor may find a condition that was not detected or considered by the first doctor, or a doctor may discover the misdiagnosis of a serious illness.

Many patients are also intimidated by doctors because of their credentials, experience, education, and even the confusing way they sometimes explain a medical condition. Doctors, however, are often overwhelmed with their work, seeing many patients in one day, performing surgical procedures, and wading through reams of paperwork on other days.

Doctors regularly meet with patients who complain of nonexistent symptoms or who come in for very minor medical matters, so it should not be surprising if they dismiss a patient's symptom as just another minor condition that either is exaggerated or will soon go away.

It is rare to find a physician who makes all the right decisions or who knows all the latest procedures or medical conditions. Seeking a second opinion is a right and a necessity that should be used whenever there are any concerns.

Aon Risk Solutions, an international risk management consulting company, teaming with the American Society of Healthcare Risk Management (ASHRM), reports that America's hospitals are expected to receive over 44,000 medical malpractice claims related to 2009 incidents. Aon and ASHRM's 11th-annual Hospital Professional Liability and Physician Liability Benchmark Analysis anticipates claims costs in excess of $8.6 billion.

The report also indicates that claim severity has been increasing at a rate of four percent per year, that liability claim frequency is rising at a rate of one percent annually and that in 2010, hospitals should expect specific liability costs associated with emergency department and obstetrical care. The increases could drive medical liability costs higher than general inflation.

Increased liability costs could result in dramatic changes in some health care markets. Rural providers may be forced to close practices. Physicians may order more diagnostic procedures as a means of insulating themselves from liability and less as a standard of care. Disparities in the standards of care, as well as understaffing in some specialties areas, may result from the rising cost of practicing medicine.

Concentrated effort will be needed to truly understand the impact of rising medical malpractice claims and premiums on hospitals, physicians and patients. The challenges of managing liability risks may ultimately derail health care reform progress. What may be unavoidable is the reality that political, economic, legal and social factors shape the practice of medicine in our country.