Brianne Carlson was a 32-year-old Detroit police officer, a daughter, and a sister. When she was diagnosed with metastatic cervical cancer, she trusted her doctors to be honest with her about her condition and her options.
She was told her cancer was treatable. Radiation and chemotherapy were presented as a path forward. At one point, the word remission was used. She was never told that treatment was failing, that her prognosis had worsened, or that multiple clinicians had internally documented that she was unlikely to tolerate further chemotherapy.
In September, Brianne was transferred between hospitals while actively ill. Her worsening infection was documented, but critical imaging was canceled. High-dose chemotherapy was given anyway. Within days, she suffered rapid respiratory failure. Only then did testing reveal severe pneumonia and bloodstream infection. By the time hospice was mentioned, she had minutes left to live.
After Brianne's death, her family accessed her full medical record—136 pages that were never included in discharge paperwork. Those records revealed a devastating truth: her doctors knew far more than they ever told her.
Brianne did not die because medicine is unpredictable. She died because transparency failed, safeguards were ignored, and informed consent was compromised.
We are calling on Michigan lawmakers to pass Brianne's Law—a patient-safety reform that guarantees honest disclosure, infection screening before high-risk treatment, protections when patients are cognitively impaired, and accountability when internal warnings are ignored.
No family should have to uncover the truth after it's too late.
Sign this petition to demand patient safety, transparency, and dignity in care.
Learn more about Brianne's Law and patient safety protections
