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Misdiagnosis In Usmc, No Evidence Of Disability?! I'ts Genetic! Diagnosis Is Undeniable
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Jcastle
In '93 I was a Marine at Camp Pendleton. I recieved a letter from my paternal uncle. He also was a former marine being treated by the VA. The letter stated that he had been diagnosed with a genetic disorder which causes cancer of the endocrine system. If one had the disease, cancer was guaranteed. The chances of having the gene on my fathers side of the family is 50%. The letter stated that all members of my family needed to go to the Dr. to be screened for the disease. I took the leter to the clinic and discussed it with the Dr. He took blood and asked me to return in a week. I did, and the Dr. told me that I was not a carrier of the disease. I was involved in a training explosion in which I recieved numerous injuries, resulting in a medical discharge which I am now 40% disabled.
After discharge, in '94 I eventually became a fireman. In 1999, I began having serious joint issues. I went to at least 5 different specialists. Nonee of which could find the cause. The pain became severe, eventually preventing me from doing the thing that I loved most, fighting fire. I finally went to the VA, they ran all kinds of expensive tests that the other Dr's were not financially willing to run. Of course, I had the rare genetic disease that causes cancer, and had thyroid cancer to boot. I was shocked to say the least! I requested my military med rec's. They showed that the Dr. only sent my blood to the lab asking for routine blood results, and a thyroid level test! There were at least 5 different tests that needed to be done to rule out the disease. One of which was a test for thyroid cancer. The cancer coupled with the major permanent and untreatable joint damage has left me permanently cripled, and the thyroid cancer destroyed my parathyroid glands. The parathyroid glands and thyroid were all totally removed. Living without a thyroid is inconvient, Living without parathyroid glands is cripling and can be fatal. I have to take huge amounts of oral medication every 12 hours, or I die within 12 hours of missing the meds. Needless to say, I had to give up firefighting, and am unable to work. I applied to the VA for a service connected rating, my doctors stated that by the size, growth rate and damage taht had taken place, I absolutely had cancer in '93, If they would have just looked for it, it would have been easy to find, and I would not have lost my parathyroid glands, or suffered joint damage.
The VA denied the claim stating their stance on genetic predispositions, and that without symptoms, or evedence of illness, the genetic disorder itself is not enough to base a claim on. I responded and stated that the reason that the evedence was missing was because of a misdiagnosis by the USMC (ok, Navy) Dr.and I included the letters from my VA doctors stating that the cancer was present in 93. The VAcontinued to deny the claim. I have 5 kids at home and am living barely able to get by.
I need to know what I should do. I am sure that if a smart lawyer were able to argue in front of a medically inteligent panel, I would win.
Any advice is welcome. I am hospitalized for weeks at a time every 3 months or so and in between times I am stuck in my easy chair on enough morphene to kill a small country. I wish I could sue for malpractice, or have my discharge changed into a retirement. At the least, 100% unemployable! As it sits, I am raising a family of 7 with SSD and 40%.
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