Senior Trial Partner Daniel L. Freidlin, Partner Nicole S. Barresi, and Associates Casey M. Hughes and Ashley Mullings- Maragh successfully obtained summary judgment in a case involving a young married woman who presented to our client pulmonologist in October 2012 for management of an incidentally seen sub-centimeter nodule on CT scan. The patient was a smoker and had a family history of lymphoma. Our client evaluated the patient over the next sixteen months, including ordering serial CT scans to monitor the nodules for stability. Plaintiff did not return after December 2013.
The patient was evaluated by several physicians over the next six years, including our co-defendant internists. On January 22,2020, the patient underwent a CT scan ordered by another physician. The CT scan demonstrated multiple airspace consolidations for which neoplasm could not be excluded. She returned to our client pulmonologist, who ordered antibiotics to rule out the possibility that the areas seen on CT scan were multifocal pneumonia. He also ordered a repeat CT scan three weeks later to make sure the areas were not changed. After our client discussed the results of the CT scan with the patient and the plan going forward, she instead elected to transfer care to another pulmonologist. Three months later, the patient was diagnosed with lymphoma.
MCB moved for summary judgment arguing that the care rendered in 2012 and 2013 was appropriate as the standard of care for incidentally identified lung nodules is to perform serial CT scan to confirm stability. We also argued that the plaintiff's claims were barred by the statute of limitations and that Laverne's Law did not apply. With respect to the care in 2020, we argued that the care rendered conformed to the standard of care as appropriate management for airspace consolidations seen on CT scan was to first order antibiotics to rule out pneumonia followed by repeat imaging to evaluate for change in the findings. The Court agreed with our arguments and dismissed the case against our client pulmonologist in its entirety.