A power morcellator is a medical device that performs a specific function during laparoscopic surgery.

During surgery, a power morcellator is used to cut up targeted pieces of tissue inside the body. This allows for tissue to be removed from the body without the need for large surgical incisions.

Once the power morcellator cuts up the targeted tissue into smaller pieces, it can be laparoscopically removed using a small incision into the abdomen. This process allows for organs, growths and other tissue to be removed using less invasive surgical techniques.

The result can be shorter surgical procedures, shorter patient recovery periods and less scarring on the abdomen following surgery.

Power Morcellator Procedures

In a traditional myomectomy or hysterectomy procedure, a doctor makes incisions that are between three and seven inches long that allow him or her to remove the uterus intact.

However, the procedure often requires several days in the hospital and may leave long scars. Women commonly undergo these procedures to remove fibroids or benign growths.

A less invasive approach that may result in reduced recovery times involves the use of a laparoscopic power morcellator. The device includes a blade that cuts into the uterus so that the doctor may remove it in pieces through tiny incisions via the hollow tube of the device.

Though this device initially promised patients faster recovery times, the preservation of the uterus, and the avoidance of complicated surgery, there may be some serious power morcellator side effects in some cases, including the failure to remove all the target tissue.

If some of the target tissue was missed and if that tissue was cancerous, a patient’s cancer risk would have not been adequately addressed through the procedure.

Additionally, the disruption of target tissue may have the potential to spread cancerous cells throughout the patient’s abdomen. This spreading of cancer cells can significantly decrease a woman’s chance of long-term survival, particularly for patients who had a prior history of uterine cancer.

FDA Warning Issued

In 2014, nearly ten years after the agency first approved the first power morcellator device, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) issued a safety warning regarding these medical devices.

This warning recommended that physicians stop the use of these devices during hysterectomy or myomectomy procedures for the removal of uterine fibroids.

Morcellator Cancer Lawsuits

Lawsuits have been filed against several power morcellator manufacturers by patients who have been diagnosed with uterine cancer such as leiomyosarcoma.

Their claims allege that the device makers did not warn patients about the risks associated with morcellation and that they manufactured defective products.

If you or a loved one has been diagnosed with power morcellator side effects such as leiomyosarcoma or other uterine cancer after a laparoscopic power morcellator procedure a morcellation cancer lawsuit attorney can assist you throughout the legal process.

When patients suffer from severe side effects from a dangerous or defective medical device, they may be entitled to compensation for their injuries and damages.