sponsor
Homepage > Boston News
E-Mail News Alerts
Get breaking news and daily headlines.
Browse all e-mail newsletters

Two Top Hospitals Targeted In Malpractice Lawsuit

X-Ray At Center Of Case

POSTED: 6:12 pm EDT May 20, 2005
UPDATED: 6:34 pm EDT May 20, 2005

The death of a renowned Harvard scientist is now the subject of a malpractice lawsuit that names two of Boston's best-known hospitals -- Brigham and Women's and the Dana Farber Cancer Institute.

NewsCenter 5's David Boeri reported that Stephen Jay Gould was a best-selling writer and world-renowned biologist who modified Darwinism. He died at 60.

His family said that his cancer went undiagnosed by three doctors at the two hospitals because they never saw the cancer lesion on an X-ray.

"He wasn't diagnosed until it had already metastasized. That's malpractice right there," Gould's mother, Eleanor Gould, said.

"The top cancer institute, Dana Farber, and the top oncologists, you figure it would be a shock to find yourself in fourth-stage terminal cancer," Gould's widow, Rhonda Roland Shearer said.

Gould went for screening at lease three times per year, according to the lawsuit. His doctor, Robert Meyer, of Dana Farber, was also Gould's best friend.

"He said, 'Look, I am seeing the top oncologist,'" Shearer said.

In February 2001, an X-ray was taken of Gould's lungs. The radiologists at Brighams noticed nothing. The next X-ray, taken one year later in New York City, showed lung cancer that had gone to Gould's liver, spleen and brain.

"All of a sudden, out of the head of Zeus, he has fourth-stage cancer," Shearer said.

In 10 weeks, Gould was dead. Later, the family's attorney uncovered the X-ray from 2001 that revealed a 1-inch cancer lesion.

"At the time when the lung cancer was curable, it inexplicably was not detected by three physicians," attorney Alex MacDonald said.

The lawsuit comes as no surprise to the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, where officials said the claims against Mayer are without merit.

Brigham and Women's, where the two radiologists worked, said it would respond through the legal process.

Links We Like
Even in summer, some virulent bugs are circulating. Here’s all you need to know to prevent and treat cold and flu. More

Home improvements are a good thing when selling. However too much of a good thing can actually cost you more money than it can make you. More

Not everyone can excel at the art of the suck-up and that’s okay. But it’s important to connect with others in the workplace in order to further your career. Here are some simple ways to do just that. More

Learn how to recognize the signs of Alzheimer’s and the eight signs that someone you love may have the disease. More

Like online video? Then you'll love Now See This.

Links We Like includes a selection of information, tools and resources from our partners and sponsors.
PhotoVote
Check out this week's PhotoVote contest, "Summer Fun."
Plus, navigate through our archives.
Favorites: Cute Kittens | Odd Couples | Oops
Sponsored Links
Consumer Info

Sponsored Content Provided by ARA