A cancer patient is suing his hospital and surgeons after they allegedly removed the wrong organ during a botched appendix operation.
George Piano, 72, had been diagnosed with appendicitis and went for an operation to have his appendix taken out at the University of Washington Medical Center in December last year.
But when the pain persisted after the treatment, scans revealed doctors had removed part of his large intestine instead of his appendix.
The bowel was also now leaking its contents into the abdomen, causing an infection and making the pain ‘much worse’ than before he had the surgery.
George Piano, 72, pictured above with wife Betsy, from Washington state, said doctors removed part of his large colon when they were meant to remove his appendix
He has now had four surgeries because of the botched surgery, suffered an infection and had a wound the size of a pool ball in his abdomen that wouldn’t heal for months
Mr Piano has filed the lawsuit claiming medical malpractice. He is pictured above in hospital during treatment
According to the lawsuit, the father-of-two has since had to go for four surgeries and was left needing to defecate into a bag.
He has also suffered with constant pain and a wound the size of a pool ball in his abdomen that did not heal for months.
The lawsuit also says the botched surgery forced him to delay treatment for cancer.
The former construction worker is seeking damages for medical malpractice from the hospital and his surgeons Nidhi Udyavar and Paul Herman.
He has not said how much he is seeking, but his lawyer Ed Moore said similar cases in the past have led to pay-outs from $500,000 to $3million.
His case was filed with King County Superior Court on December 6 and a trial date has been set for November next year.
Speaking about his injuries, Mr Piano — from Lake Forest Park — told KIRO 7 while fighting back tears: ‘It’s been a year of hell. I’m not the same person I was when this started.
‘[But] I feel very lucky I am still alive.’
He added: ‘We didn’t want it to happen to someone else.
‘Someone needed to put a stop to this and take responsibility and say this happened — we need to take steps to make sure it doesn’t happen again.’
Mr Piano said in the court filings that he went to the University of Washington Medical Center with abdominal pains on December 6.
Doctors rushed him through for surgery, but when he came back round he said the pain had already become ‘much worse’.
A CT scan carried out two days later revealed his appendix was still in place but that a part of his bowel had been removed.
He was sent for surgery again on the day of the scan to have the appendix removed.
Mr Piano said that since the botched surgery he has spent 53 days in hospital, lost 40lbs and developed anxiety and short-term memory loss.
He says in court documents that the multiple medical problems he has suffered ‘did not exist’ until he had the botched surgery.
Mr Piano has also claimed he required weekly home health physical therapy visits and home nursing visits to check his vital signs.
In the lawsuit, Mr Piano says doctors told him they removed a part of his bowel because it had diverticulitis — a medical condition where small pouches form and become inflamed in the wall of the colon.
Mr Piano and his wife Betsy say they are now receiving weekly health physical therapy visits and home nursing visits because of Mr Piano’s condition
The University of Washington Medical Center said that they always aimed to provide patients with the best possible care. Pictured above: Mr Piano during treatment
A spokeswoman for the University of Washington said: ‘UW Medicine strives to provide the best possible care to all of our patients.
‘Their safety and well-being is deeply important to us. We are not able to comment on the specifics of the case.’
Appendicitis is when the appendix — a small, finger-shaped pouch on the large intestine — becomes inflamed and fills with puss.
Doctors cut out the appendix in order to resolve the pain, noting that the organ appears to have no function in the human body.
In cases where the pain is not treated, patients can face complications including a burst appendix — which can cause a major infection in the abdomen.
About 250,000 Americans are diagnosed with appendicitis every year, which is normally treated via surgery. It is rarely fatal.
