A SIX-figure settlement is set to be given to the family of a young Halesowen father who died from cancer after treatment was delayed.

Following a three-and-a-half year legal battle, Dudley Group NHS Foundation Trust has admitted to making an error in its care for Daniel Hemmings.

The family of the 27-year-old will now receive an undisclosed sum following legal action against both the Dudley trust and Worcestershire Acute Hospitals NHS Trust.

Diane Wake, chief executive of the Dudley Group NHS Foundation Trust, said: “We would like to offer our sincere condolences to the family of Daniel Hemmings for their sad loss.

“The claim pursued by Daniel’s family has now been resolved by way of a joint settlement to reflect the complicated circumstances of his clinical management between 2010 and 2012.

“During this time, he was seen by clinicians at Worcestershire Acute Hospitals NHS Trust and The Dudley Group NHS Foundation Trust.

“In 2011, we misinterpreted a scan as reassuring. This delayed Daniel’s referral to the specialist cancer centre. We are very sorry for this error. This was carefully investigated and no evidence was found that our error contributed to Daniel’s death.

“We hope that this settlement helps to support Daniel’s family in the future.”

Daniel died in March 2014, four years after he first sought medical advice regarding a lump on his lower back which was growing in size and increasingly painful.

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According to specialist medical negligence lawyers at Irwin Mitchell, who have been investigating Daniel’s treatment, they say he was referred to Worcestershire Royal Hospital and an MRI scan was undertaken, but no follow-up appointment was then made to review the findings.

He was then referred to Russells Hall Hospital in 2011 where his lump was deemed to be a benign tumour which was removed in an operation.

However, further tests then confirmed the tumour was in fact a malignant spindle cell sarcoma, but Daniel’s family claim he was not informed of this due to a mix-up related to his contact details and was only seen by the hospital in July 2012 when he received his diagnosis.

Although the Dudley trust has now admitted Daniel should have been referred earlier than he was, no other admissions of liability were made by either trust.

Daniel’s partner Fallon Waldron (pictured below), who lives in Halesowen with the couple’s six-year-old son, said: “It is almost three and a half years since Daniel passed away and we all continue to miss him so much.

“It breaks my heart when Harry talks about daddy being in the stars because I am devastated that he will never have a lasting relationship with his father.

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“I still look back in disbelief that it took around two years from Daniel complaining about the lump for it to be recognised for what it was.

“Unfortunately this settlement came without full admissions of liability from either trust, so for us as a family some questions do still remain about how this was allowed to happen.

“I just hope that if any good can come from the nightmare we have faced, it is that lessons can be learned which will ensure that the treatment and care received by others can be improved.

“This should simply not happen again.”

A spokesman for Worcestershire Acute Hospitals NHS Trust said: “We would like to offer our sincerest condolences to Daniel’s family.

“We’re pleased to see that a settlement has been reached that reflects the difficult situation that the Hemmings family have been through.

“We hope this settlement will help to support Daniel’s family going forward.”

Jenna Harris, an associate solicitor and the expert medical negligence lawyer at Irwin Mitchell, said: “Securing this settlement for Fallon is a small ray of light in a desperately tragic and devastating case.

“A young father sought medical advice related to a lump and put his faith in the medical professionals who advised him. Unfortunately, by the time he received the appropriate care it was too late.

“We will continue to work with Fallon to ensure she and Harry have the support they need moving forward.”