HENRICO COUNTY, Va. — Former radiologist Michael Bigg agreed to compensate the families of two former patients of his who have died from breast cancer after the Virginia Board of Medicine found that he misread their mammograms which delayed treatment.
However, Bigg still denies that he did anything wrong.
The settlement agreements come more than two years after the Medical Board suspended his license to practice for misreading the mammograms of 18 different patients.
Bigg and his former business, the Allison Breast Center, agreed to a settlement with the families of Tina Doub and Lucille Leatherwood.
"I mean my knees are shaking because I knew those women, and I got to know their families, and they were wonderful ladies, and they fought hard to live, and they just couldn't make it," Stephanie Grana with Cantor Grana Buckner and Bucci, who represented the women and their families, said.
Each family will receive $1 million, with part of that money going to their attorney.
Judge Ronald Johnson presided over Friday's settlement hearing, and told the families he was very familiar with what happened, and that he was "happy and proud" to sign off on the settlement.
In the settlement paperwork, Bigg said he does not admit liability and expressly denies the same, but he "nonetheless offered to compromise" the claims "to avoid further cost and expenses of litigation."
Bigg did not attend the hearing.
"Once the case is resolved, no physician has a duty to be present at a hearing like this," Grana said.
Grana represented eight other clients against Bigg in civil lawsuits
She said every single one has now been settled.
Seven of those women are still living.
"All of the women I've represented and the hundreds of women I've spoken to unfortunately got treatment later than they should have, so that is never going to be justice," Grana said.
She hopes this ordeal encourages women to get their mammograms and trust their gut.
"If you feel a lump, if you feel pain, if you feel just uncertainty, have it checked out again even if it's three months after your last mammogram," Grana said.
The Virginia Board of Medicine revoked Bigg's license after he voluntarily surrendered it in January of 2021.
