A Florida Circuit Court found gastroenterologist David Vastola, DO, of a Palm Beach Gardens, Fla., innocent after a patient claimed he allegedly rushed a colonoscopy missing his developing colon cancer, the Daily Business Review reports.
Here's what you should know:
1. A patient accused Dr. Vastola of rushing a colonoscopy in 2011, after the patient was diagnosed with advanced-stage colon cancer in 2013, following another colonoscopy.
2. Dr. Vastola's attorney argued the patient's cancer had an atypical development, which was the reason behind Dr. Vastola not discovering it in 2011.
3. The patient regularly underwent colonoscopies starting in 1990s. The patient said he developed polyps "more often than the average person."
4. The patient had a colonoscopy in 2008 where benign polyps were discovered and removed. None of them were in the part of the colon where cancer develops.
5. The patient argued when he saw Dr. Vastola in 2011 he allegedly had cancer in the transverse colon. Dr. Vastola's colonoscopy allegedly took eight minutes, which Dr. Vastola's attorney argued was routine.
6. The patient's attorney argued the patient's cancer couldn't have developed as quickly as it did, and that cancer typically takes five years to evolve after a polyp is formed. The patient has terminal stage four cancer.
7. The patient was seeking $1.1 million to cover his medical bills and additional juror-determined damages. After 1.5 hours, the jury ruled in favor of the defense.