$18M Verdict to Woman For A Delayed Cancer Prognosis

Four years ago, Kerri Downes, 22 at the time, was concerned when she discovered a lump in her right breast. She went to a nurse practitioner on March 29, 2018, and was told it was benign and there was nothing to be worried about…dailylocal.com, Chester County woman, 26, wins $18 million jury verdict in breast cancer malpractice case, Fran Maye, July 2022

Extensive tests were not done, as breast cancer in young women is extremely rare. An ultrasound, which may have discovered cancer, was not ordered.

Over the course of the next nine months, the lump in her breast grew from the size of a grape to even larger. Alarmed, she went back to the same practice in December of 2018, but this time saw a physician, who discovered a palpable mass the size of a golf ball in her right breast. An ultrasound was performed, and medical professionals determined she had an aggressive form of breast cancer.

Downes was awarded an $18 million jury verdict in Chester County in a medical malpractice case that centered around a nurse practitioner failing to diagnose and timely treat her breast cancer.