In this medical malpractice case, summary judgment was granted in favor of appellee-defendants on the ground that appellant’s action was barred by the statute of limitation. Appellant appeals.
The evidence of record establishes that a doctor discovered a lump in appellant’s right testicle in 1971. The testicle was surgically removed by appellee Dr. Allen, and the lump was determined to be a cancerous tumor. Following the surgery, appellant underwent radiation therapy at appellee DeKalb General Hospital, the majority of which therapy was effectuated by appellee Dr. Daly. This therapy was administered and completed during March and April of 1971. During and after the radiation treatment, appellant experienced various physical problems, including nausea and diarrhea, discoloration and peeling of the skin of the radiated areas of his body, penile swelling, severe itching, anemia, and sterility. Appellant was treated for these disorders, but he nonetheless suffered from recurring maladies. Appellant was told by Dr. Allen and by Dr. Daly that his physical difficulties were the result of radiation, but appellant was allegedly led to believe that his condition was a normal consequence of radiation therapy.
Appellant was last treated or seen by appellee Dr. Allen in April 1974, and he was last treated or seen by appellee Dr. Daly in 1971. Although appellant and Dr. Daly had numerous follow-up communications after the radiation therapy was completed, Dr. Daly had no professional contact with appellant after 1975, if then. In the meantime, however, appellant had consulted several other doctors, commencing as early as 1972. In 1974, appellant decided to seek another opinion concerning his condition, and Dr. Ambrose told him that his problems were the result of radiation. In 1976, Dr. Amerson informed appellant that he was suffering from radiation enteritis, and intestinal surgery was performed on appellant that same year. Even though the doctors who treated appellant informed him that radiation was the cause of his various illnesses, appellant contends that he never suspected that he had received negligent or improper radiation therapy until 1981, when he discussed the matter with yet another *210 physician, Dr. McCord. Immediately after learning from Dr. McCord that his injuries should not have occurred if the radiation had been administered properly, appellant brought suit against appellees.
The statute of limitation relevant to appellant’s action is OCGA § 9-3-71. That statute has been held unconstitutional under certain circumstances where the limitation period expired before a cause of action accrued. See
Clark v. Singer,
Appellant contends that there is a genuine issue of material fact as to the existence of fraud in the instant case. Appellant asserts that appellees knew that the radiation equipment which was used at DeKalb General Hospital in 1971 was defectively “underpowered,” and that appellees concealed or deliberately failed to inform him that his injuries were caused by such defective equipment. However, these assertions are not supported by the record. There is no admissible evidence of record to establish that any known defect existed in the equipment. Nor is there any evidence that appellees were aware of any defects or that there was even any reason to suspect that such defects might exist.
Similarly, there is no evidentiary support for appellant’s contentions that appellees knowingly failed to inform him that he had received an excessive amount of radiation because of arithmetic miscalculations and the overlapping of areas which were radiated. While the record does show that arithmetic errors did occur, and that the improper overlapping of radiated areas may have occurred, there is nothing whatsoever to suggest that these mistakes were discovered by
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appellees prior to the institution of the instant lawsuit. While this failure may be evidence of negligence, it is not evidence of fraud which would toll the statute of limitation. See
Johnson v. Gamwell,
Appellant’s remaining claim of fraudulent concealment is that appellees deliberately led him to believe that his condition was a normal consequence of the radiation therapy necessitated by appellant’s testicular cancer, and that they failed to disclose that his injuries were the result of “improper treatment.” However, even if appellant’s contentions in this regard are correct, appellant’s contact with appel-lees ceased in 1975, at the latest. Both before and after 1975, appellant obtained medical opinions and diagnoses from doctors other than appellees. There is nothing in the record to suggest that appellant was prevented from learning of appellees’ alleged negligence or from discovering their alleged fraud after 1975. Since suit against appellees was not brought until 1981, substantially more than two years later, the trial court correctly ruled that the instant action was barred by the statute of limitation.
Wade v. Thomasville Orthopedic Clinic,
supra;
Hamilton v. Mitchell,
Judgment affirmed.