SANTA ANA, Calif. (CN) – A woman claims Kaiser brushed off her complaints of uterine bleeding despite knowing she had a tumor, and it metastasized into lung and liver cancer two years later, in a complaint filed in Orange County Superior Court.

Hope and Nick Guillermo sued Kaiser Foundation Hospitals Southern California Permanente Medical Group, Kaiser Foundation Health Plan, and several doctors. 

Hope says she first came to Kaiser in 2013 because her uterus was bleeding and her stomach hurt. Though an ultrasound showed a tumor in her uterus, the doctors told her that her condition was “common” and that the tumor was benign.

But her bleeding did not stop, and four months later she had to have blood transfusions to treat severe anemia, according to the complaint.

Soon afterward she had a hysterectomy, and was told by the surgeon that her tumor was still benign and that she did not need to come back for another year, the complaint states.

Despite the doctor’s assurances that she was fine, Hope says she suffered for two years from chronic chest and back pain until she was diagnosed in July 2016 with lung and liver metastasis caused by malignant soft tissue tumors.

The Guillermos claim that, had Kaiser treated Hope’s condition instead of ignoring her complaints, she may not have developed these cancers.

They seek economic and non-economic damages for medical malpractice and loss of consortium.

They are represented by Marshall Silberberg of Irvine.