MEDICAL MALPRACTICE

COLLIER CIRCUIT COURT

A jury ruled for a radiologist who was sued by a patient alleging the doctor failed to diagnose her cancer in a timely manner.

Ruth Llanos, who was in her 40s, claimed her breast cancer should have been diagnosed based on a December 2011 mammography. At trial, her expert radiologist testified the test revealed a 1-centimeter breast mass and should have been diagnosed. Instead the disease was diagnosed 10 months later. Llanos required a lumpectomy, chemotherapy, radiation therapy and the removal of 23 lymph nodes. The cancer recurred in her lower back, and her condition is considered terminal.

The defense claimed the original mass was dense breast tissue and Llanos' cancer developed later. The jury apparently agreed, delivering a verdict for Dr. Mary Kay Peterson.

Case: Llanos v. Peterson

Case No.: 11-2014-CA-001445-0001-XX

Plaintiffs attorneys: Joseph R. Johnson, Babbitt & Johnson, West Palm Beach, and Jeff Vastola, Vastola Legal, Palm Beach Gardens

Defense attorneys: R. Clifton Acord II and David Rissman, Rissman, Barrett, Hurt, Donahue, McLain & Mangan, Tampa