Preview Newsletter
Morcellation Media Monitoring 06/22/2015
-
Plaintiffs Ask Federal Panel to Transfer All Power Morcellator Lawsuits to Kansas Judge
Jun 19, 2015 | HarrisMartin
Plaintiffs in six of the nearly two-dozen federal lawsuits alleging a link between power morcellator use and the spread of cancerous cells have filed a petition seeking consolidation of the cases in Kansas. -
Two Philadelphia Women, Represented By Attorneys Tracey & Fox, File New Morcellator Lawsuits
Jun 22, 2015 | Digital Journal
Two women have filed new complaints against Olympus Corporation and its subsidiary Gyrus ACMI, adding their voices to the growing power morcellator litigation. Power morcellators, used to grind uterine and fibroid tissue into small fragments for removal, pose the serious risk of spreading and worsening undetected uterine cancer. Now patients have begun to file lawsuits against the manufacturers of what they claim are unreasonably dangerous medical devices.
Morcellation
Client Attorney Privileged/Attorney Work Product/At Request of Counsel
Full Text of Stories Below
-
Plaintiffs Ask Federal Panel to Transfer All Power Morcellator Lawsuits to Kansas Judge
Jun 19, 2015 | HarrisMartin
Plaintiffs in six of the nearly two-dozen federal lawsuits alleging a link between power morcellator use and the spread of cancerous cells have filed a petition seeking consolidation of the cases in Kansas.
In a June 18 motion to create a multidistrict litigation docket for all pending and future morcellator lawsuits, the plaintiffs asked the Judicial Panel on Multidistrict Litigation to transfer the cases to Judge Kathryn H. Vratil, a former JPML chairman sitting in the U.S. District Court for the District of Kansas.
Plaintiffs began filing lawsuits alleging injuries caused by power morcellators after the devices were linked to several medical disorders, including the dissemination and upstaging of occult cancer and the development of recurrent parasitic fibroids.
Laparascopic Power Morcellators are electronically powered tools that use a bladed feature to shred uterine fibroids and other tissue so that they can be easily removed through small incisions in the abdomen. The process has been used in recent years as an alternative to traditional, open abdominal surgical hysterectomies, myomectomies and laparotomies.
According to the plaintiffs, however, manufacturers of power morcellators knew as far back as the early 1990s that tissue fragments created by the morcellation process are frequently left in the abdomino-pelvic cavity and can become implanted in surrounding tissue or organs.
“When tissue fragments escape into the abdomino-pelvic cavity and seed in other tissue or organs, complications can arise months or years after the surgery,” the petition states. “As a result, the use of Laparoscopic Power Morcellators can spread, upstage or worsen a women’s occult cancer, changing the state of the cancer from an early stage cancer into a much higher stage cancer and significantly worsening a woman’s prognosis.”
They allege that the manufacturers of power morcellators failed to disclose evidence linking use of the device to the dissemination and upstaging of occult cancer and other injuries, and instead aggressively marketed the devices without adequate warnings.
In April 2014, the FDA issued a safety communication discouraging the use of laparascopic power morcellation during hysterectomy or myomectomy for the treatment of women with uterine fibroids. Several months later, the agency issued an advisory indicating that use of the device in patients with unsuspected uterine sarcoma may worsen the long-term survival.
The plaintiffs contend that in addition to the 22 power morcellator lawsuits currently pending in federal courts around the country, numerous additional claims are expected or have already been filed in several state court venues.
One of the cases is pending in the District of Kansas, but is not assigned to Judge Vratil, who the plaintiffs say is best suited to preside over the MDL given her JPML experience and her current status as a transferee judge for two other non-related MDL dockets.
The motion to transfer was filed by Paul J. Pennock of Weitz & Luxenberg in New York.
In Re: Power Morcellator Products Liability Litigation, MDL No. n/a (JPML).
-
Two Philadelphia Women, Represented By Attorneys Tracey & Fox, File New Morcellator Lawsuits
Jun 22, 2015 | Digital Journal
Two women have filed new complaints against Olympus Corporation and its subsidiary Gyrus ACMI, adding their voices to the growing power morcellator litigation. Power morcellators, used to grind uterine and fibroid tissue into small fragments for removal, pose the serious risk of spreading and worsening undetected uterine cancer. Now patients have begun to file lawsuits against the manufacturers of what they claim are unreasonably dangerous medical devices.
The most recent complaints were filed on May 14, 2015, in the Philadelphia County Court of Common Pleas. Like previous claimants, Betty Dobson and Anita Whittaker allege that the use of a power morcellator, manufactured by Olympus, spread undetected uterine cancer cells throughout their bodies. Dobson’s complaint was filed under case number 150401310, while Whittaker’s lawsuit has been registered as case 150401312.
Both plaintiffs are represented by Sean Tracey, Rebecca King and Andrew Rubenstein of Tracey & Fox and Rosemary Pinto of Philadelphia’s Feldman & Pinto, P.C. The experienced attorneys at Tracey & Fox are currently providing free consultations to patients who believe that a morcellator procedure contributed to the spread of undetected uterine cancer.
In their lawsuits, Dobson and Whittaker allege that the Japan-based Olympus Corporation reasonably should have known of the morcellator’s dangers. Plaintiffs cite two decades of scientific research, studies repeatedly indicating that power morcellation presents a risk of spreading undetected cancers. But plaintiffs claim that Olympus failed to design its product in a manner that would eliminate those severe risks. In fact, the women allege that Olympus has misrepresented the risks of its device, by presenting the power morcellator to patients and healthcare professionals as safe to use during gynecological surgeries.
Dobson and Whittaker’s allegations come in the wake of several major safety warnings released by the US Food & Drug Administration. The FDA now warns against the use of laparoscopic power morcellators “in the majority of women undergoing myomectomy or hysterectomy for treatment of fibroids.” Estimating that as many as 1 out of every 350 women undergoing a uterine fibroid removal procedure may in fact be harboring undiagnosed uterine sarcomas, the FDA has also required all morcellator manufacturers to include a “Black Box” warning on their products. In response, Johnson & Johnson, once the world’s largest morcellator producer, has pulled its devices from the market. And several of America’s largest health insurers, including UnitedHealth Group and Aetna, have decided to limit or drop coverage for morcellation procedures completely.
But for the plaintiffs in a wave of power morcellator lawsuits, the industry’s recent warnings may have come too late. Many of these women are now living with late-stage sarcomas, and several complaints have been filed by widowers.
Read more: http://www.digitaljournal.com/pr/2590422#ixzz3dnQuhtbW
Morcellation
Client Attorney Privileged/Attorney Work Product/At Request of Counsel
Full Text of Stories Below
Add recipients
Suggested