False Cancer Diagnosis Trial Starts in Polk County

A Polk County, Iowa man was given a false cancer diagnosis at the Iowa Clinic, and now the matter is going to trial.

Rickie Huitt of Panora sued the clinic in 2017, after having surgery that he later learned he didn't need, because he didn't have cancer. He was told by the staff at the Iowa Clinic that pathologists had mixed up his microscope slide with another patient's who actually had cancer. The trial began Tuesday and jurors will decide how much money Hutt receives for this embarrassing medical error. Lawyers say it should be a minimum of $15 million. Attorneys say the Iowa Clinic has already admitted liability, and now compensation is the only question.

In their opening statement, Hutt's lawyers said, "What it all boils down to is damage in two human lives that was negligently inflicted".

Hutt says that since the surgery and subsequently learning of the false diagnosis, he has felt depressed, angry and "hasn't felt like a man".

We hope the patients and their families find satisfactory resolution in this medical horror story.

[Via Iowa City Press-Citizen]