Martinez. v. Wu

Dr. Fagel achieved a settlement of $490,000 on behalf of a 72-year-old man who currently suffers from prostate cancer. The Plaintiff, Serafin Martinez has suffered a loss of probability of a cancer cure due to a failure to properly diagnose and treat the patient in a timely manner.

The Plaintiff was a patient of the defendant, a general practitioner, since 1993 and had received annual physical examinations with blood tests. In December of 2008, a PSA test was administered that showed a result of 5.5 (normal range is 0-4). The result was never reported to the patient nor was treatment recommended. In September of the next year, Dr. Wu administered another PSA test which yielded results of 47.4. Dr. Wu then referred the plaintiff to an urologist, who confirmed the presence of prostate cancer.  A rectal exam illustrated that the tumor had spread beyond the prostate gland. Mr. Martinez then sought a second opinion at the USC Norris Cancer Center where he was told surgery was not an option and recommended a hormone treatment followed by radiation. Mr. Martinez underwent the recommended treatment and has showed no signs of cancer spreading

The defense alleged that all care was within standards and that the patient refused a digital rectal exam in December 1998. Additionally, the defense alleged that Mr. Martinez's PSA levels were not abnormal for his age group at the time and treatment has showed that he is cured and therefore suffered no damages.

Dr. Bruce Fagel was able to refute the various claims made by the defendants by demonstrating that Dr. Wu's treatment fell below the standard of care in not performing a digital rectal exam with each physical and not following up on elevated PSA levels in December 1998. At that time, the patient would have had greater than a 90% probability of cure rather than the 50% probability he had when the cancer was diagnosed and treated.