US Man, 70, Died After Doctor Removed Wrong Organ During Surgery: Lawsuit

A 70-year-old man in the United States died on an operating table after the doctor mistakenly removed the wrong organ during surgery, the New York Post reported. William Bryan and his wife Beverly were visiting their rental property in Florida last month when he suddenly began experiencing lower left abdominal pain. They immediately went to Ascension Sacred Heart Emerald Coast Hospital, where the 70-year-old was admitted for further tests over concerns about an abnormality of the spleen. The doctors then convinced the man to undergo surgery at the hospital. However, the operation led to the death of the man after the doctor mistakenly removed the man's liver during surgery before the surgeon attempted to pass off the organ as an "enlarged spleen," according to a lawyer representing the man's widow.

In a Facebook post, the law firm claimed that General Surgeon Dr Thomas Shaknovsky and the hospital's Chief Medical Officer Dr Christopher Bacani persuaded the reluctant family for the 70-year-old to undergo surgery at the hospital or he "could experience serious complications if he left the hospital". Mr Bryan agreed with the doctors and underwent a hand-assisted laparoscopic splenectomy procedure in August. "From the records it appears, both physicians were involved in the discussion as to the appropriateness of the planned procedure and the capabilities of the facility to accommodate such," the law firm wrote. 

In the middle of the surgery, Mr Shaknovsky removed Mr Bryan's liver by transecting the major vasculature supplying the liver. The surgical cut resulted in "immediate and catastrophic blood loss resulting in death," the Facebook post read. 

The law firm claimed that after the doctors mistakenly removed Mr Bryan's liver, the general surgeon labelled the organ as a "spleen," which was only identified as a liver after the man's death. The surgeons meanwhile explained to Mr Bryan's wife that her husband's "spleen" was so diseased that it was four times bigger than usual and had migrated to the other side of his body. "The family was informed that Mr. Bryan's spleen, the root of his original symptom profile upon presentation to the hospital, was still in his body and appeared with a small cyst on its surface," the law firm said. 

Notably, inside the human body, the liver is located on the upper right side of the abdominal cavity, just below the diaphragm, and above the stomach, right kidney, and intestines. The spleen, on the other hand, is located on the upper left side of the abdomen next to the stomach and is significantly smaller and lighter than the liver. 

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In the Facebook post, Zarzaur Law claimed that Dr Shaknovsky had a previous "wrong-site surgery" back in 2023 where he supposedly removed a portion of a patient's pancreas instead of performing the intended adrenal gland resection.

Beverly Brayns retained the law firm to get "justice" for her husband and is hoping the general surgeon no longer treats other patients. "My husband died while helpless on the operating room table by Dr. Shaknovsky. I don't want anyone else to die due to his incompetence at a hospital that should have known or knew he had previously made drastic, life-altering surgical mistakes," the widow said in a statement through the law firm. She also added that she is pushing for both civil and criminal proceedings related to her husband's death. 

North Walton Doctor's Hospital "disassociated" itself from Shaknovsky and has removed all photos and references to the doctor from its website, according to the law firm. Ascension Sacred Heart Emerald Coast Hospital said it was investigating the man's death. 

According to the Post, an apparent small cyst was discovered later on Mr Bryan's spleen which is believed to be the cause of the pain he was hospitalized for.