Necrotising fasciitis can affect anyone, although people with a suppressed immune system are more at risk, including those having chemotherapy.
Chemotherapy immunosuppression
Chemotherapy is a common type of cancer treatment. It does have a number of adverse side effects, one of which is immunosuppression. Immunosuppression is when the immune system is unable to respond to foreign pathogens, as it would normally do. Consequently patients who are undergoing chemotherapy treatment are more vulnerable to catching infections, including the necrotising fasciitis infection.
Chemotherapy and necrotising fasciitis
Necrotising fasciitis is a rare and very aggressive type of bacterial infection. It is estimated by NHS England that there are around 500 new cases of necrotising fasciitis in the UK every year.
If you are having chemotherapy and you get necrotising fasciitis, it is very unfortunate, but it is not necessarily negligent. Indeed, chemotherapy makes you more susceptible to infection, so the fact you have developed necrotising fasciitis is not the fault of clinicians.
Necrotising fasciitis treatment
A chemotherapy patient’s susceptibility to necrotising fasciitis is beyond the control of medical practitioners. However, the timely diagnosis and treatment of necrotising fasciitis is still the responsibility of treating doctors.
The provision of early treatment is vital, as necrotising fasciitis is will spread very quickly, creating a large area of dead tissue within hours. The bacteria must therefore be stopped before too much tissue becomes infected. The only way to do this is to administer intravenous drugs and surgically debride the dead tissue.
The surgical debridement is of the utmost importance as the infection cannot be treated with antibiotics alone.
Delay in treatment
If you developed necrotising fasciitis as a result of having chemotherapy, but the infection was not diagnosed and treated in a timely manner, you need to talk to a solicitor. A failure to recognise and treat necrotising fasciitis will amount to a substandard level of medical care. If this caused you to suffer unnecessary injury, there may be grounds for a medical negligence compensation claim.
Necrotizing fasciitis compensation claim
To find out if you can claim compensation for necrotising fasciitis, please contact us today. We have a special interest in necrotising fasciitis claims and will be able to say whether you have the grounds to pursue legal action. If so, we will work hard on your behalf, ensuring you get the compensation you deserve. This will reflect your physical, emotional and financial damages.
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