The lawsuit alleges that physicians performing the surgery perforated the patient’s bowel and charred her rectum. Ms. Lunsford went to University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics in March 2020 for a hysterectomy, ovarian cystectomy, lymph node dissection and other procedures following a cervical cancer diagnosis.
She returned to the hospital three days after the procedure and a CT scan confirmed her bowel had been perforated. She was admitted for exploratory surgery, and her surgeon was unable to locate the perforation because of charring caused by a cautery instrument being left on the rectum for too long, according to the publication.
Ms. Lunsford originally filed a $6 million tort claim with the Iowa appeal board in March 2022, but has since withdrawn the claim after filing a lawsuit Dec. 27. She claims in her lawsuit that her medical costs increased, her mental health has worsened, and that she developed permanent disabilities that have limited her earning power and her ability to care for her family, according to The Gazette.
