After much speculation about the risk of spreading cancer with power morcellators, a study published in the Journal of the American Medical Association has assembled information on this risk. The risk was quantified from a review of data from over 200,000 patients.
The medical records review showed that 36,470 women had procedures where the uterus was fragmented using morcellation. Of those, one in every 368 women had an undiagnosed uterine cancer, resulting in 99 patients, or about 0.27%, where the unrecognized uterine cancer was unintentionally spread.
This study helps to justify and quantify the already widespread concern over the risk of power morcellators. The concern arose largely as a result of an FDA initiative to asses the risk of spreading cancer in women who have procedures done with a power morcellator. In April of this year, the Federal Food and Drug Administration issued a safety alert regarding the use of power morecellators. Later, Johnson & Johnson established a worldwide recall on its Ethicon device which holds a majority of the device market.
With this new information, it will be easier for the FDA to make a more accurate assessment of the risks of the device and define an initiative to protect patients. Lopez McHugh attorneys have extensive experience in medical device litigation. If you or a loved one developed uterine cancer after a procedure using a power morcellator, contact a lawyer at Lopez McHugh at (877) 703-7070 or contact us here for a confidential case evaluation.
