Girl with rare cancerous condition settles case over diagnosis for €4.9m

A girl who sued over an alleged delay in diagnosing her rare cancerous condition has settled her High Court action for €4.9 million.

The girl, now aged 12, cannot be indentified by court order. She has a rare condition which, like a cancer, is treated with chemotherapy.

Her father told the court on Friday that every day has been a challenge for his daughter.

Oisín Quinn SC, instructed by solicitor Cian O’Carroll, said the settlement was reached after mediation and, if the case had proceeded to hearing, would have taken six weeks.

The girl was three when the diagnosis of the rare inflammatory cancerous condition was made, he said. Their case was that there was a delay in the diagnosis and the condition should have been identified two years earlier.

Mr Quinn said the girl had presented in 2010 with a rash, which was considered to be eczema, a much more common condition.

In proceedings brought through her father against the HSE, the girl claimed that she developed a progressive rare cancerous condition with a skin rash, failure to thrive and developmental delay in the first three years of her life.

Significance

It was claimed there was failure to diagnose or treat her for that condition until about February 2012 and failure to identify adequately, or at all, the significance of a rash on the child on October 29th, 2010.

It was claimed there was failure to perform a skin biopsy concerning the rash, which she was presenting with in 2010 or in 2011. It is also claimed that the girl will remain immune suppressed throughout her life.

The claims were denied.

Approving the settlement, Mr Justice Kevin Cross said the girl’s parents have been wonderful carers for their daughter.

He congratulated the legal teams and the mediator on the settlement and said it had been one of the most complex cases he had ever encountered. It was a very good settlement and would provide for the girl for the rest of her life, he added.