Amanda Antell  |  March 27, 2015

Category: Legal News

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uterine myomectomy cancerIn a new development in the concern surrounding the use of power morcellators, a recent study found that the occurrence of uterine fibroid cancer is relatively rare but increases in likelihood with age. In the online Feb. 19, 2015 issue of JAMA Oncology, researchers found that whether or not women undergo surgery where a power morcellator is used for their myomectomy procedures, the risk of uterine sarcoma is sparse but is more likely in older patients.

According to lead author Dr. Jason Wright of Columbia University, approximately one in 1,073 women will choose to undergo a myomectomy procedure and will be diagnosed with uterine fibroid cancer. Dr. Wright and his colleagues used the Perspective database, a paid nationwide database, to identify women who underwent myomectomy procedures at 496 hospitals between January 2006 and December 2012.

The researchers analyzed when power morcellators were used during the myomectomies and estimated when uterine cancer may have developed, as well as uterine neoplasms of uncertain significance, and endometrial hyperplasia. A total of 41,777 women underwent myomectomies during this study, with 7.7 percent (3220 women) using power morcellators, with 76 cases of uterine cancer.

However, researchers noticed that even with the small number of uterine cancer cases, it was older women who were found to be the group at the highest risk:

  • Younger than 40: 0.05 percent of uterine cancer cases
  • Between 50 to 59: 0.62 percent of uterine cancer cases
  • Older than 60: 3.40 percent of uterine cancer cases

“Age was one of the strongest risk factors for pathologic findings in our analysis. The role of myomectomy in perimenopausal and postmenopausal women remains controversial,” the authors state.

The researchers went further on to say that power morcellators should be used with extreme caution in older women, especially because myomectomies are a popular surgical choice in middle-aged women with uterine fibroids. Much of the danger stems from the fact that uterine sarcomas cannot be detected before they are ruptured, resulting in a diagnosis soon after the procedure. While this is a risk with traditional surgery, power morcellators have become infamous for this event because they directly cut the fibroid into different parts to remove them.

Overall, the researchers concluded that additional research is needed and that doctors should inform patients of the power morcellator complications.

Overview of Power Morcellator Complications

Every year, thousands of women choose to undergo uterine fibroid removal surgery, with many of them opting for their surgeons to use power morcellators. Medical experts explain that compared to traditional hysterectomy procedures, power morcellators are far less invasive and require less hospital recovery time. However, it has been discovered that a significant risk comes with using power morcellators, in the form of uterine sarcomas. Due to the nature of how power morecellators remove the uterine fibroid, patients are put at risk for uterine fibroid cancer.

Power morcellators start by making a tiny incision at the surgical site of the abdomen, where the rotating blades attached to the device break down large amounts of tissue. This allows for the fibroid to be cut up and removed in pieces, which are then vacuumed out of the body. However, cutting up the fibroid tissue will rupture any underlying cancer cells, which will allow them to spread. Currently, there is no way to detect uterine sarcoma before the surgery, leaving it widely up to chance for many patients.

However, some doctors report that using medical surgical sacs to catch the debris significantly decreases the risk. Unfortunately, many doctors have not picked up this practice and remain largely unaware of the potential risks their patients are being placed in. This risk became so prevalent that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) issued a public warning regarding these complications in April 2014, citing the risks of uterine sarcoma.

The increased scrutiny of power morcellators has led to a number of proposed methods to increase the safety of these devices, including extensive preoperative evaluations by informing patients of the risks. Additionally, the establishment of national registries for women who would choose to use powered morcellators may provide more accurate statistics because clinical data can be insufficient for various reasons. These data registries may increase the chances of successful power morcellator procedures which do not result in uterine fibroid cancer.

Do YOU have a legal claim? Fill out the form on this page now for a free, immediate, and confidential case evaluation. The morcellation cancer attorneys who work with Top Class Actions will contact you if you qualify to let you know if an individual lawsuit or class action lawsuit is best for you. [In general, morcellator cancer lawsuits are filed individually by each plaintiff and are not class actions.] Hurry — statutes of limitations may apply.

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If you or a loved one were diagnosed with cancer in the uterus, pelvis or abdomen within two years of undergoing surgery for a myomectomy (removal of fibroids), hysterectomy (removal of the uterus), oophorectomy (removal of the ovaries), or salpingectomy (removal of fallopian tubes), you may have a legal claim. See if you qualify by filling out the short form below.

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