Women’s health claims we can support you with

Too many women are left feeling unheard when their care goes wrong. Our solicitors have represented women harmed by surgery, delayed diagnoses, and injuries that affected their fertility, and we have experience of group action claims in women’s health. If you’d like to talk it through, we’re here to listen.

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The types of claims we handle

Here’s a closer look at the women’s health claims we can support you with:

When surgery doesn’t go to plan

Sometimes surgery falls short of what you were expecting. When it does, you could be left with an injury to internal organs; ongoing pain; lasting incontinence; inability to have sexual intercourse. Damage beyond what the procedure required isn’t something you should just accept. If the risks were never properly explained to you beforehand, it’s worth talking to us.

Misdiagnosed gynaecological cancers

A delay in diagnosing gynaecological cancers — cervical, ovarian, womb, vaginal or vulval — can mean more invasive treatment, or a life-altering outcome that earlier detection would have changed for the better. If your diagnosis came later than it should have, it’s worth talking it through with us, whatever stage you’re at today.

Injuries impacting fertility

Fertility can be affected in lots of different ways. This might be surgery that’s damaged your reproductive organs, such as an operation to remove an ovarian cyst, or an ectopic pregnancy that wasn’t identified and treated quickly enough. It could also be a delayed cancer diagnosis that means you needed more aggressive treatment later on.

Breast cancer claims

Age can affect how breast cancer is recognised and treated. Older women may face discriminatory treatment, potentially reducing their life expectancy, while younger women’s symptoms may be dismissed as unlikely to be cancer-related without further investigation. Following a review of breast cancer services at County Durham and Darlington NHS Trust, we are investigating related claims.

Spinal injuries

Spinal cord injuries can affect women in many ways. They can face temporary menstrual changes, an earlier onset of menopause, and a higher risk of rapid bone mass loss. Pregnancy and childbirth also carry distinct medical risks. Women also frequently experience higher rates of personal trauma, and face significant physical barriers when trying to access routine preventative healthcare like cervical screenings.

Sodium valproate

In January 2015, the MHRA advised that valproate for epilepsy or bipolar disorder must not be used during pregnancy or by women of childbearing potential unless alternative treatments fail. If prescribed as a last resort, patients must use effective contraception or be fully informed of the risks to the unborn child. We represent individuals born with significant disabilities due to valproate exposure.

When You Need Us

Reasons you might seek support

Many people bringing women’s health claims describe similar experiences to us. If your symptoms were dismissed, your surgery caused damage, a diagnosis came later than it should have, you weren’t given all the information you needed or your care didn’t go as expected, it’s worth sharing your experience with us in a free consultation. We’ll listen carefully to help determine whether what happened might amount to negligence.

Tracey’s Story

How a Misreported Smear Test Was Uncovered

For almost a decade, Tracey’s smear tests were repeatedly misreported as normal. By the time her cervical cancer was finally diagnosed, almost a decade later, she needed major surgery to treat it. This left her unable to have children, along with lasting physical and emotional effects. We helped her secure answers, an admission of liability, and the support she needed to move forward.

Meet our Team

Our experienced team will be on hand to support you throughout the claim process.

What kind of support can a successful claim provide?

As well as investigating what went wrong, we consider what financial support you will require moving forwards. That might mean funding for corrective treatment, fertility treatment such as IVF, counselling, travel to appointments, care provided by family members, or simply financial breathing room if you’ve needed time off work.

We’ll always talk you through what’s realistic for your situation, honestly and without pressure.

We work on a no win, no fee basis for the majority of women’s health claims, so there’s no upfront cost and nothing to pay if your claim isn’t successful. We’ll also check whether you have legal expenses insurance that could help fund your claim.

How is medical negligence established?

To understand whether you have experienced medical negligence, we aim to answer two questions:

  1. Did the care you received fall short of what would have been expected from a medical professional?
  2. If so, did those failings cause you avoidable harm?

We work with independent experts in women’s health and other medical specialists to review your records and give us a clear, honest opinion. If we think your treatment fell short of accepted standards, that will form the basis of a claim.

Life Changing Stories

About Us

Women’s health claims can be complex areas of law. When you work with us, you can have confidence that you’ll receive the best support at such a difficult time. We are:

Client-First

At CL Medilaw, we don’t just see you as a case number; you’re a person who deserves understanding and support in pursuit of justice.

Tailored-Support

From the first consultation through to the result of your claim, we will listen, understand, and build the right plan together.

Fee-Assured

If you’re worried about the cost of bringing a claim, we offer No Win, No Fee with insurance protection to help secure your funding.

Results-Focused

Ultimately, everything we do is geared towards our main goal — achieving the right result for you and your family.

FAQs around gynaecology claims

Hysterectomy negligence claims can include surgery that wasn’t necessary, damage caused to nearby organs during a procedure, or a failure to properly explain the risks and alternatives beforehand. If anything like this has happened to you, you are encouraged to seek advice from a solicitor specialising in medical negligence.

An ectopic pregnancy misdiagnosis includes a delay in the diagnosis itself, your symptoms being dismissed or misread, or a scan being misinterpreted. Outcomes like these can lead to a medical emergency that could have been avoided.

If a smear test was misread, mislabelled, or reported as being normal when it wasn’t, and this delayed a cancer diagnosis, you may be in a position to bring a claim.

Surgery for an ovarian cyst can affect fertility if it damages the ovaries or reproductive organs beyond what was necessary. This is one of the more common ways a routine gynaecological procedure can lead to a lasting fertility injury.

In most cases, you have three years from the date of the negligence, or from when you first became aware of it, to bring a claim. Timeframes are longer for children or anyone who lacks full mental capacity. If you’re not sure whether you’re still within time, it’s always worth asking a specialist for guidance.

Women’s health claims typically take two to four years, since they need detailed expert evidence on the standard of care you received and its impact on you. We won’t rush to settle early.

Most claims are resolved without going to court. If yours does, we’ll prepare you fully and be with you at every stage.