The surviving son of a South Carolina woman who died after a power morcellator used in her hysterectomy allegedly spread uterine sarcoma throughout her body is suing Karl Storz Endoscopy-America Inc., the medical device manufacturer for failing to warn about this risk.

Plaintiff Michael W. filed the morcellation cancer lawsuit on behalf of his now deceased mother, Enid W. According to his complaint, Michael is pursuing legal against Karl Storz because the company allegedly: failed to warn Enid or her doctors of the risk of using the Storz Morcellator, made and sold an unsafe medical device, and finally fraudulently misrepresented this device and the risks associated with its use in laparoscopic surgery.

“These acts and omissions of the Defendants injured the Decedent, exposing her to risks of her cancer spreading throughout her body and causing her to endure painful and expensive radiation treatment, and ultimately led to her death,” the morcellation cancer lawsuit claims.

Back in May 2011, Enid underwent a laparoscopic hysterectomy to remove fibroids from her uterus. During this procedure, the Storz Morcellator was used to “cut, shred, and remove Decedent’s fibroid and uterus.”

After the surgery, the fibroids removed from Enid were examined and discovered to be cancerous. According to the morcellation cancer lawsuit, “the Storz Morcellator disseminated and fulminated a uterine adenosarcoma cancer throughout her abdominal cavity, worsening her long-term prognosis and the natural course of this cancer.”

Six days after her laparoscopic hysterectomy, Enid was diagnosed with adenosarcoma, a type of uterine cancer.

Her son alleges in the morcellation cancer lawsuit:

“The dissemination of cancer cells caused by the use of the Storz Morcellator significantly amplified the speed with which Decedent’s adenosarcoma metastasized, and significantly depreciated the long-term prognosis for the course of her uterine cancer . . . Had the Storz Morcellator not disseminated and fulminated the cancer cells throughout Decedent’s abdomen, she would not have suffered and been diagnosed with advanced stage adenosarcoma.”

Enid died on April 13, 2012, after succumbing to her uterine cancer.

What are Power Morcellators?

Power morcellators are medical tools that can drill a small hole into a surgical area in order to perform laparoscopic, also known as  “key hole,” surgery. As the morcellator drills into the uterine fibroid, it shreds the uterus or fibroid tissue, allowing for easy extraction.

Laparoscopic morcellation surgery became a popular choice for both patients and surgeons, as the procedure is a minimally invasive and reduces scarring and recovery time when compared to more traditional surgical methods.

Morcellation Cancer Risks and FDA Warnings

The FDA estimates that when undergoing laparoscopic morcellator hysterectomy or myomectomy procedures, 1 in every 350 women is likely to have an undiagnosed sarcoma in their uterus. If a power morcellator hits and shreds a sarcoma, the cancerous cells can spread in the patient’s abdominal cavity, upstaging a cancer diagnosis and usually leading to a patient‘s death.

In response to these morcellation cancer findings, the FDA launched a uterine fibroid investigation in April 2014. The agency has also warned physicians to avoid using morcellation when possible during a hysterectomy or myomectomy surgery.

Additionally, many hospitals have made it policy to not perform morcellator procedures in light of this FDA warning and other supporting morcellator cancer research.

Power Morcellator Lawsuits

This power morcellator lawsuit brings several claims against Karl Storz, including negligence, defective manufacturing, design defect, failure to warn, strict liability, breach of implied warranty, personal injury, breach of express warranty, negligent misrepresentation, fraudulent misrepresentation and omission, fraud by concealment, wrongful death, and survivor action.

It is one of dozens being launched against manufacturers of power morcellators, including Karl Storz, Johnson & Johnson, Ethicon, and others.

The Morcellation Cancer Lawsuit is Case No. 3:15-cv-01585-RMG, in the U.S. District Court for the District of South Carolina.