A woman died shortly after filing a lawsuit against the power morcellator procedure that allegedly spread undetected cancer throughout her body.

A 44-year-old woman named Brenda Leuzzi was suffering from uterine fibroids. The painful condition caused a severe and unusual amount of bleeding, which prompted her to agree to a power morcellation hysterectomy.

The controversial procedure came with side effects and unknowingly spread uterine cancer throughout Leuzzi’s body. She filed a lawsuit in May 2014 in an attempt to get compensation for her worsening medical status. In a tragic twist of fate, Leuzzi passed away five months later.

Power Morcellator Surgery Changed Her Life

Brenda Leuzzi, 44, died from stage four uterine cancer just two years after undergoing a hysterectomy with a power morcellator device.
Image: Change

When Leuzzi made the decision to undergo power morcellator surgery, she had no idea that it would change her life forever. In the lawsuit, she complained that she wasn’t adequately warned of the dangers associated with power morcellation.

The lawsuit came in conjunction with an announcement from the University of Rochester, the medical center that discovered the fibroids. Health representatives from the center decided they would no longer use power morcellation techniques due to the possibility of spreading undetected cancer.

“Specimens can be removed from the abdominal cavity using non-power morcellation or intact through larger incisions in the abdomen or vagina,” according to the University of Rochester Medical Center.

However, Leuzzi isn’t the only one who has been affected by power morcellation. The FDA estimates that 1 in every 350 women may have undetected cancer cells that can be triggered by the procedure.

A Family That Keeps Fighting

Leuzzi’s husband George fights for justice by continuing the lawsuit and urging the FDA to ban power morcellator devices.
Image: Beta News

Although Leuzzi was unable to finalize the fight for her own justice, her family did not give up. Her husband, a firefighter named George, updated the legal complaint to reflect the circumstances of her death.

“Now that she’s passed I will do my part to carry on what she started,” George Leuzzi said. “I will help as much as I can to get this removed.”

In an ongoing FDA investigation, the governmental body evaluated the dangers of the device and considered banning power morcellation surgeries altogether. The agency issued a warning but has not yet made the decision to stop the procedure.

“I’m very disappointed in the FDA. They should have banned this by now. They’re just stalling and finding some other way to convince themselves it’s OK,” George Leuzzi said.

Many women are still suffering from cancer that may have been caused by power morcellation devices. If you or a loved one developed cancer after having your uterine fibroids removed with a power morcellator, then you might be entitled to compensation.

Complete a free, no-obligation case evaluation now to see if you qualify.

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A couple comprised of two medical professionals has made it their mission to ban power morcellator surgery.

Cardiothoracic surgeon Dr. Hooman Noorchashm and anesthesiologist Dr. Amy Reed have experienced the dangers of power morcellation surgery firsthand.

After the procedure to remove her uterine fibroids spread undetected cancer in her body, Reed and her husband launched a campaign to ban the device once and for all.

The Birth of the Campaign

Power morcellator surgery can spread fragments of cancerous tissue, leading to a worsened prognosis.
Image: Contemporary OBGYN

Laparoscopic power morcellation is a medical procedure that is used to remove painful fibroids from the uterus. Through small incisions, the morcellator device breaks and clears fibroids embedded in uterine tissue.

In October 2013, doctors at Brigham and Women’s Hospital in Boston removed Reed’s uterine fibroids with a power morcellator.  No one expected that a minimally invasive procedure could come with life-changing consequences.

As the device destroyed the fibroids, it spread hidden leiomyosarcoma cancer cells throughout Reed’s abdomen. Reed and her husband were outraged, and they began searching for answers.

The couple set out to discover how frequently undetected leiomyosarcoma was released and spread by power morcellation surgery. After consulting with doctors and other women who developed cancer as a side effect of surgery, the two took to the internet to start a Change.org petition that urged the FDA to put an end to the procedure.

“I basically used the same intensity I brought to work and focused it on this,” Noorchashm told ABC News. “What you’re seeing here is a large volume of time and non-stop sustained [work] in order to make a change.”

Reed and her husband were successful in altering the ways that doctors at Brigham and Women’s Hospital regulate power morcellator procedures, but the duo won’t stop until it has been banned altogether. The real goal is to save other women from an avoidable fate.

“We want the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists and the American Board of Obstetrics and Gynecology to change this ‘standard of care’ by ending the needless waste of life caused by spreading cancer with morcellation,” Noorchashm wrote on Change.org.

FDA Defines Risk Associated With Power Morcellators

Currently, there is no way for doctors to test if a mass in the uterus is a benign fibroid or a malignant uterine cancer.
Image: Medscape

Power morcellation surgery can cause pain and infections, but the most serious side effect is the possibility of developing uterine cancer. Although Reed and Noorchashm haven’t reached their ultimate goal of banning the surgery, the campaign has been successful in drawing attention to the issue.

The FDA has released figures that show 1 in 350 women are at risk of developing uterine cancer from power morcellation surgery. The regulatory agency is still looking into the procedure to determine what should be done to mediate this risk.

In the meantime, women are still suffering as a result of power morcellation surgery. Those who developed cancer after undergoing a uterine fibroid removal procedure with a power morcellator might be entitled to compensation. 

Complete a free, no obligation case evaluation now to see if you qualify.

The post Two Doctors Spearhead A Life-Saving Campaign Against Power Morcellators appeared first on Citizens Report.

The Government Accountability Office will inspect the Food and Drug Administration’s hasty approval of power morcellators.

Despite the fact that power morcellators are associated with minimally invasive surgery, Congress holds these controversial medical devices accountable for hundreds of cancer-related deaths.

After a multitude of dangers linked to power morcellators, the federal government is finally paying attention.

The U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO) has launched an internal investigation to evaluate the Food and Drug Administration’s approval of the widely used surgical instrument.

How Could Surgery Spread Cancer?

Power morcellators are often used to fibroids, also known as benign growths, in the uterus.
Image: Journal of Ultrasound in Medicine

Many are inclined to believe that minimally invasive surgeries are safe, but that’s not always the case. Laparoscopic power morcellation procedures, which provide relief from uterine fibroids through small incisions, have extremely dangerous long-term side effects.

The devices treat uterine fibroids through two different kinds of procedures. Hysterectomies involve removing the uterus while a myomectomy focuses on eliminating the actual fibroids. A myomectomy is preferred for women wanting to have children. Less frequently, the devices are also used for renal nephrectomy or splenectomies.

Fibroids are painful mounds of tissue that cause heavy menstrual bleeding, extended periods and radiating pain. Fibroids are very common and can be removed by a medical professional.

During the power morcellation removal process, pieces of tissue are often left behind. The remaining tissue spreads throughout the body, forming undetected tumors that develop into cancer.

Women who underwent these procedures are increasingly being diagnosed with uterine cancer, causing the medical community to speculate on the safety of the devices. Since then, multiple studies have linked power morcellation to occult uterine cancer.

The Long-Awaited Investigation

The GAO will be evaluating the FDA’s 510(k) approval process and the time it took to add a warning label to power morcellators.
Image: Facebook

The devices, which are meant to come with few risks, have been used by medical professionals since 1991. As regulators begin to evaluate the devices, the truth will finally be uncovered.

The FDA issued a warning in April 2014 urging doctors to discontinue the use of power morcellators in their practices. The warning came after a study that unveiled the true number of women who developed cancer from power morcellation surgeries.

The results proved that 1 in every 350 women who had fibroids removed were at risk for uterine cancer. After six months, the FDA finally included a warning on the product’s labeling.

The investigation, which includes two major parts, was deemed necessary by twelve members of Congress. These lawmakers are determined to find out why the FDA waited months to warn the public about the dangerous side effects of power morcellators.

In addition, the investigation will evaluate the 510(k) approval process that brought the devices into the market with little speculation. The accelerated process, which limits the need for extensive pre and post-approval safety testing, may be responsible for the lack of awareness about the cancer-causing side effects.

Legal Support For Injured Patients

Patients who developed cancer from power morcellation deserve justice.
Image: ABC News

Federal investigators are set to start looking into the devices, but the issue remains largely unresolved until new regulations are enacted. Patients who underwent uterine fibroid surgery because they weren’t informed of the risks deserve justice now.

If you or a loved one developed cancer from a procedure that used power morcellation techniques, you are not alone. You are entitled to health-related compensation for problems caused by power morcellation procedures.

Click here for a free case evaluation to learn more about legal rights and remedies.

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