Dozens of Indigenous individuals in Canada are suing two radiologists, alleging they conducted MRI scans without consent as part of a secretive scientific study on liver health.
The lawsuit, filed in Nova Scotia’s Supreme Court in June 2020 and recently given class-action status, involves 59 members of the Pictou Landing First Nation who claim they were subjected to scans between 2017 and 2018 for research purposes, without their knowledge.
Chief Andrea Paul, the lead plaintiff and a member of the Pictou Landing First Nation, underwent an MRI scan in March 2017 as part of a medical research project. However, the lawsuit alleges that she was unknowingly kept in the scanner for a separate second study on liver disease. The defendants, radiologists Robert Miller and Sharon Clarke, are accused of conducting this additional MRI study based on the scans, presenting their findings at a conference and drafting an unpublished research paper without consent from participants.
The plaintiffs are seeking damages and declarations from the defendant of their various violations, including invasion of privacy, assault and battery, negligence and breach of trust.
According to the lawyers representing the plaintiffs, the victims allege they were not given results of the MRI scans, even when images revealed conditions requiring medical intervention.
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