The U.S. Government Accountability Office is currently investigating the FDA approval of power morcellators and their link to spreading undetected cancers when used during various gynecological surgeries such as hysterectomies and myomectomies.

Recently 12 members of congress wrote a letter to the Government Accountability Office asking the agency to investigate power morcellators.

The congressmen and women who signed the letter include representatives from Pennsylvania, New York, Louisiana, California, Connecticut, Illinois, Washington and several other states.

The lawmakers are asking the GAO to consider whether medical device reporting regulations were appropriately followed by the device manufacturers and the FDA, specifically whether federal regulations associated with FDA approval policies sufficiently identify risks of adverse events; and what steps the FDA is now taking to determine whether laparoscopic power morcellators are safe to remain on the market.

The investigation by the GAO comes shortly after the Federal Bureau of Investigation probed into whether Johnson & Johnson, one of the medical device manufacturers, had prior knowledge of the dangers of power morcellators use in gynecological surgeries.

Whether or not an FBI investigation has been initiated is currently unconfirmed.

What are Power Morcellators?

Power morcellators are a type of laparoscopic medical device used by surgeons. Many patients choose to use power morcellators because they allow surgical procedures to be performed in a minimally invasive way.

Laparoscopic surgeries are generally associated with a reduced risk of infection and a shorter recovery time. Unfortunately for many women, the use of power morcellators during gynecological surgeries may cause the spread of aggressive cancer cells.

FDA Power Morcellator Warnings

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration started warning medical professionals and women who are considering gynecological surgeries to avoid the use of power morcellators.

According to the FDA, 1 out of 350 women who undergo a hysterectomy or myomectomy have an undiscovered uterine sarcoma, a type of uterine cancer.

For many patients, at the time of the surgery the cancer cells are in their beginning stages and self contained. Then the power morcellator shreds the tissue in the woman’s uterus causing the cancerous cells to spread throughout the body and exponentially fast rate.

Morcellation Lawsuits

Product liability attorneys are currently looking for potential plaintiffs to bring power morcellator lawsuits against the medical device manufacturers for failing to warn consumers about the dangerous risks associated with these devices.

Potential morcellator plaintiffs include women who were diagnosed with cancer within two years of having gynecological surgery. Gynecological surgeries include myomectomy (removal of fibroids), oophorectomy (removal of ovaries), salpigectomy (removal of the fallopian tubes), and a hysterectomy (the removal of the uterus).

Power morcellator lawsuits may provide successful plaintiffs with compensation to pay for both past and future medical bills and can serve as a small step towards compensating victims for the pain and suffering they have endured due to the medical device.

In some cases, morcellation lawsuits may be brought by family members who have lost loved ones to cancer spread by power morcellators. This is known as a wrongful death lawsuit.