Malpractice claims for pancreatic cancer in Norway - claim-rates, injury domains, claim outcomes and indemnity compensation

Q: What was the study’s objective regarding pancreatic cancer malpractice claims in Norway?

To investigate malpractice claims in Norway related to pancreatic cancer, including claim rates, injury domains, claim outcomes, and indemnity compensation.

Q: How many claims were filed and what proportion were approved?

A total of 148 claims were filed among 9548 patients, and 33 claims (22.3%) were approved.

Q: What injury domain and outcomes were most common among approved claims?

Delayed diagnosis was the predominant approved issue, with radiology involved in many approvals. The outcome was death in 16 of 33 approved claims, and prognostic loss was determined in five patients.

Sep 22, 2026

Upload by Taylor Morgan

Pancreatic cancer is difficult to diagnose early and at a curative stage, yet errors in management remain poorly characterized. This nationwide study evaluates all malpractice claims filed in Norway between 2015 and 2024 related to pancreatic cancer. Among 9548 patients, 148 claims were filed and 33 (22.3%) were approved, mainly involving delayed diagnosis. Radiology contributed to many approvals. Approved claims reflected diagnosis delays, frequent death outcomes, and substantial indemnity payments.

LanguageEnglish

CategoryHealthcare

FormatPDF

Pages9

Reading Time23 min

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Abstract

Patients and Methods

Results

Interpretation

Keywords

Introduction

ORIGINAL ARTICLE Malpractice claims for pancreatic cancer in Norway: claim-rates, injury domains, claim outcomes and indemnity compensation Annbjørg H. Søreidea, Karin H. Edlandb, Andreas B. Alvestadc,d, Solveig Hodnee,f and Kjetil Søreideg, h,i aLervig Legesenter, Stavanger Municipality Primary Healthcare, Stavanger, Norway; bDepartment of Oncology, Stavanger University Hospital, Stavanger, Norway; c Department of Radiology, Stavanger University Hospital, Stavanger, Norway; dStavanger Medical Imaging Laboratory (SMIL), Stavanger University Hospital, Stavanger, Norway; eSHARE-Centre for Resilience in Healthcare, Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Stavanger, Stavanger, Norway; fDepartment of Quality and Health Technology, University of Stavanger, Stavanger, Norway; gDepartment of Gastrointestinal Surgery, Stavanger University Hospital, Stavanger, Norway; hDepartment of Clinical Medicine, University of Bergen, Bergen, Norway; iDepartment of Surgery, Institute of Clinical Sciences, Sahlgrenska Academy, University of Gothenburg, Gothenburg, Sweden ABSTRACT Background and purpose: Pancreatic cancer is difficult to diagnose early and at a curative stage, yet little is known about errors in management. The aim of the study was to investigate malpractice claims in Norway. Patients and Methods: All malpractice claims filed to the Norwegian System of Patient Injury Compensation between 2015 and 2024 for pancreatic cancer were evaluated. Results: A total of 148 claims (median 15 [range 8–20] claims/year) were filed among 9548 patients with pancreatic cancer, for an average claim rate of 1.55%(1 claim per every 65 pancreatic cancers) . Most claims were filed against hospital/specialists (n = 90), followed by general practitioners (n = 49) with nine claims towards private practice contractors (P < 0.001) . A total of 33 claims (22.3%) were approved, of which 28 (85%) concerned delayed diagnosis. Radiology was involved in 18 of the 33 approvals. According to caretaker-level for the malpractice claim, approved claims were 23% for hospital-claims, with lowest approval-rate against general practitioners (12%), and highest against private contractors (66%) . Median delay in diagnosis was estimated at 6 months. The outcome of the error was ‘death’ in 16 of 33. Prognostic loss was determined in five of 33 patients, while 12 patients had no prognostic loss despite an approved claim. Caretaker-level did not differ regarding death or prognostic loss in claims (P = 0.203). A total of 1.47 million EUR was paid in indemnity payments. Interpretation: The claim rate of 1.5% was stable, with about one in five claims approved. Diagnostic delay was the predominant cause, with several stakeholders involved across the healthcare system. ARTICLE HISTORY Received 2 February 2026 Accepted 25 March 2026 Published 13 April 2026 KEYWORDS Pancreatic cancer; malpractice; litigation; management errors; compensation Introduction Pancreatic cancer is difficult to diagnose at an early and operable stage [1–3] . Consequently, pancreatic cancer has a high lethality rate and one of the worst long-term survival rates among solid organ tumours and, is estimated to become the second leading cause to cancer deaths globally within the next few years. Among all patients presenting with pancreatic cancer, a mere 15–20% can be offered curative attempt-surgery with optimal multimodal systemic therapy [4, 5]; as many as 40–50% of all patients may not receive any form of active treatment, either due to higher age and frailty or due to locally advanced or disseminated disease [4, 5] . Pancreatic cancer presents with few or rather unspecific and vague symptoms in its early stage (i.e. unspecific abdominal discomfort; non-specific symptoms), with more prominent or overt clinical signs (i.e. weight-loss and cachexia; jaundice; abdominal or back pain) usually indicating more advanced and often incurable disease [1] . Hence, the clinical diagnosis r

FAQs

What was the study’s objective regarding pancreatic cancer malpractice claims in Norway?

To investigate malpractice claims in Norway related to pancreatic cancer, including claim rates, injury domains, claim outcomes, and indemnity compensation.

How many claims were filed and what proportion were approved?

A total of 148 claims were filed among 9548 patients, and 33 claims (22.3%) were approved.

What injury domain and outcomes were most common among approved claims?

Delayed diagnosis was the predominant approved issue, with radiology involved in many approvals. The outcome was death in 16 of 33 approved claims, and prognostic loss was determined in five patients.

Sep 22, 2026

Upload by Taylor Morgan