Tampa · Cancer care
Cancer care claims and the deadlines that govern them
A claim over a late cancer diagnosis turns on two clocks. One can start when the problem is, or should have been, discovered. The other is an outer limit, 4 years from the date of the incident (opens in a new tab) unless an exception applies.
The short answer
Can the time to bring a claim run out before a late diagnosis comes to light?
It can. The notice of intent to sue must be served within the deadline (opens in a new tab): 2 years from the incident or from when it was or should have been discovered, and no more than 4 years from the incident (opens in a new tab) unless an exception applies. The 4 years run from the incident, whenever the problem comes to light.
When does the clock start if the problem was found late?
A medical malpractice lawsuit must be started within 2 years from the time the incident occurred, or from the time it is discovered or should have been discovered with due diligence (opens in a new tab). The Florida Supreme Court held in 1993 that discovery here means knowledge of the injury and of a reasonable possibility that it was caused by medical malpractice (opens in a new tab).
In the same decision the court said that, if the injury is such that it is likely to have occurred from natural causes, the statute will not begin to run until such time as there is reason to believe that medical malpractice may possibly have occurred (opens in a new tab). If instead the injury communicates the possibility of medical negligence (opens in a new tab), the period begins upon discovery of the injury itself.
The court accepted that deciding when the statute begins to run may often require a fact-finder (opens in a new tab).
Can the time run out before you know anything went wrong?
There is also an outer limit, and it is a bar, never extra time: the action may not be started later than 4 years from the date of the incident (opens in a new tab), subject to the two exceptions below.
The Florida Supreme Court in 1992 quoted a description of it as barring claims even for acts of negligence that could not reasonably have been discovered (opens in a new tab) in that time.
The court explained that a limit of this kind runs from the date of a discrete act on the part of the defendant without regard to when the cause of action accrued (opens in a new tab). So a finding missed more than 4 years ago may be barred however recently it came to light.
What has to be proved in a late-diagnosis claim?
The patient must prove, by the greater weight of the evidence, that the provider breached the prevailing professional standard of care (opens in a new tab).
The breach must also have caused the harm: the Florida Supreme Court said in 2014 that the patient must establish that adequate care more likely than not would have avoided the injury (opens in a new tab). A diagnosis that could have come sooner is not enough: the delay must, more likely than not, have caused the injury claimed.
Who may testify about the standard of care is set by statute. That expert must be a licensed health care provider who conducts a complete review of the pertinent medical records (opens in a new tab). Where the provider is a specialist, the expert must specialize in the same specialty (opens in a new tab), with practice, teaching or research in it during the 3 years before the incident.
What if the care was at a cancer center established by statute?
One Tampa cancer center is established by a Florida statute. Florida law establishes the H. Lee Moffitt Cancer Center and Research Institute, a statewide resource for basic and clinical research and multidisciplinary approaches to patient care (opens in a new tab). It is named here only because a claim about care there, of any kind, can follow different rules.
That statute says the not-for-profit corporation that governs and operates the center, and any approved not-for-profit subsidiary, shall be conclusively deemed corporations primarily acting as instrumentalities of the state (opens in a new tab) under the government claims statute, for purposes of sovereign immunity.
What a government body can be made to pay is limited, in the 2026 statutes, to no more than $200,000 to one person or $300,000 for one incident (opens in a new tab) without a further act of the Legislature. The deadlines above do not change: a medical malpractice action against such a body must be commenced within the limitations for such actions (opens in a new tab). The written claim that comes first is explained under university doctors.
Which entity gave the care has to be established. The State’s licence record names H Lee Moffitt Cancer Center and Research Institute Hospital Inc as owner and licensee (opens in a new tab) of the center’s hospital, and Moffitt describes a parent corporation with three other not-for-profit subsidiaries (opens in a new tab) and two for-profit ones. The University of South Florida’s audited financial statements say the center and its subsidiaries agree to give university faculty and resident physicians access to its programs and patients (opens in a new tab), so a doctor there may be the university’s.
Where is a case from here filed?
Tampa is in Hillsborough County (opens in a new tab), and the county is, by itself, Florida’s Thirteenth Judicial Circuit (opens in a new tab).
A case is generally brought in the county where the defendant resides or where the cause of action accrued (opens in a new tab). So the county where the care was given is one place to file, and it may not be the only one.
See also where a Tampa medical malpractice case is filed and the Florida law page.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is a late diagnosis enough to bring a claim?
No. By statute, the existence of a medical injury does not create any inference or presumption of negligence (opens in a new tab). The patient must prove a breach of the prevailing professional standard of care (opens in a new tab) and that it caused the injury.
If the patient has died, is the time counted from the death?
The Florida Supreme Court held in 1984 that the medical malpractice period applies to wrongful death actions based on medical malpractice (opens in a new tab), so the time is not simply counted from the death.
How long do I have to bring a claim?
The lawsuit must be started within 2 years of the incident, or of when it was or should have been discovered, and in no event later than 4 years after the incident (opens in a new tab). The notice of intent must be served within those time limits (opens in a new tab). Where fraud or concealment prevented discovery of the injury, the period runs 2 years from when the injury was or should have been discovered, and in no event beyond 7 years from the incident (opens in a new tab). For a child, the statute says only that the 4-year and 7-year limits do not bar a claim brought on or before the child’s eighth birthday (opens in a new tab), and that clause does not mention the 2-year period.
What does it cost to have a case reviewed?
Nothing. The case evaluation is free, and there is no fee unless we win.
Keep reading
- 01
Florida law
The steps before a lawsuit, the deadlines, what must be proved, what can be recovered, and the rules for government and federal providers.
Florida law page - 02
University doctors
State university doctors: who the claim is against, the limits and the notices
Explore university doctors - 03
Veterans’ and military care
Federal rules for veterans and for service members
Explore veterans’ and military care - 04
Courts and deadlines
Courts, limits on damages, and the records you can obtain
Explore courts and deadlines