$6M Settlement: Animating Failure to Examine and Treat Malignant Melanoma

Robert Phillps, Esq., needed a visual presentation that would help his audience understand how the tumor spread throughout his client’s body, and how the delay in treatment resulted in the patient undergoing painfully aggressive medications that would exacerbate his pain and suffering for a year before he died.

We worked with Mr. Phillips and Christina Hedges, RN CEN, to build the following animations. The visual presentation helped Mr. Phillips return his client’s family a $6M settlement, which is believed to be one of, if not the, largest non-economic damage medical malpractice settlements in the history of South Carolina.

The first animation demonstrates how the untreated tumor grew deep into the hypodermis layer of the patient’s skin, where cancerous cells penetrated lymph nodes and spread throughout his circulatory system to vital organs. If the melanoma had been treated before it reached these lymphatic vessels, cancer could have been prevented from reaching vital organs.

The animation concludes with a series of colorized CT Scans and MRI’s that highlight exactly where cancer formed in his spleen, kidney, lungs, and brain. Anchoring the audience’s understanding of where these tumors were located helped reinforce the gravity of damages the patient suffered before death, as a direct result of gross negligence.

After demonstrating how the untreated melanoma advanced to damage the patient’s organs, the next animation shows the aggressive treatments he would need to undergo while outlining the painful side effects each medication caused for the patient throughout his body.

In light of the rapid progression of cancer, his treatment was changed several times to different combinations of drugs that would cause double-vision, muscle pain, joint pains, fever, sharp stinging pain, and problems tasting food. He was eventually put on an experimental research drug that caused nausea, mouth inflammation, and hand and foot syndrome. He was taken off the drug after he became profoundly symptomatic.

Despite the aggressive treatments, the patient’s melanoma continued to advance until the patient died one year after being diagnosed with cancer.

MediVisuals + High Impact’s team of visual strategists, artists, and developers can build and customize your digital presentation for any case involving personal injury, medical malpractice, birth trauma - or any subject involving complex information.

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