Imagine being told you had cancer and going through nine years of chemotreatment only to learn that your doctors made a mistake.
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That's exactly what happened to one man. Being told you have cancer is a serious blow. It's a diagnosis that completely changes one's life. It takes an impact on you physically and mentally, so to learn that you never had cancer probably would sting more than a little bit. Sure, you're happy that you don't have the Big C, but what about all of the hardships you went through?
Anthony Olson said that Dr. Thomas C. Weiner, who is a former oncologist at St. Peter's Health, told him that he had Myelodysplastic syndromes (MDS) in 2011. MDS is a group of cancers that affect the bone marrow in the body.
Weiner gave him a startling prognosis that he would be dead in a year if he didn't start treatment.
"That diagnosis changed the direction of my life," Olson told ProPublica. Weiner came to his diagnosis after ordering two bone marrow biopsies. One showed signs of MDS while the second one, taken 10 months later, showed no signs of MDS.
Man Misdiagnosed With Cancer
Despite the second one being clear, Olson continued his treatment based on the doctor's recommendations. The doctor told him that it was a sign that his treatment was working and that he should continue it.
He said, "That doesn't say you didn't have the disease. It just means that the treatment worked, and it knocked it away. It doesn't mean you didn't have it at the beginning."
However, the hospital ultimately decided to retest the original sample and found that he never had cancer to begin with. Dr. Robert LaClair, a kidney specialist, found that Olson had an iron overload. He determined that the chemo was making his anemia worse.
LaClair later urged Olson to seek a second opinion, believing that Weiner had been wrong. He also ended up getting Weiner fired. St Peter's Health accused the doctor of "harm that was caused to patients by receiving treatments, including chemotherapy, that were not clinically indicated or necessary."
In 2021, Olson stopped his cancer treatment and sued the hospital. They later settled for a disclosed amount. Meanwhile, Weiner has denied the allegations and sued the hospital himself for wrongful termination.
Ultimately, a Montana judge threw out the suit, but Weiner appealed it to the state Supreme
Olson went on to stop his cancer treatment in 2021 and sued St Peter's a year later. The hospital settled and paid an undisclosed amount.
Weiner has denied all the allegations and has since sued the hospital for wrongful termination and defamation.
A Montana judge dismissed the suit, ProPublica reports, but Weiner went on to file an appeal. The hospital released a statement, "Our patients trust us with their health and well-being, and it's a privilege and responsibility we take very seriously. St. Peter's is focused on moving forward, and we remain fully committed to providing the great care and experience our community deserves."
