Morcellation is a part of some types of laparoscopic surgery, a futuristic, cutting-edge procedure. However, a new study has supported concerns that morcellation can be linked to serious complications, including making cancer spread. This has lead to continued scrutiny for morcellation and morcellation cancer lawsuits.

Laparoscopic surgery is a type of surgery in which surgeons use small, specialized tools which can be inserted into a patient’s body through very small incisions. Since the bulk of the surgery is performed through very tiny incisions, the surgery is less of a trauma for the patient. However, a new study has indicated that a specific type of laparoscopic surgery, morcellation, may actually spread cancer throughout the body, lending credence to morcellation cancer lawsuits.

When laparoscopic surgery is used for hysterectomies, morcellation comes into play. When removing a uterus via laparoscopic surgery, the fact that the organ is larger than the small incisions used in this type of surgery mean that the organ must be cut up before it can be removed. The process of cutting up tissue during a laparoscopic surgery is called morcellation.

However, patients who have had laparoscopic hysterectomies have been found to experience a higher rate of dangerous forms of uterine cancer. It has been long hypothesized that this process could help uterine cancer to spread throughout the body. The latest study was published in the July issue of the Journal of the American Medical Association or JAMA. The JAMA article was the largest study of its type, and looked at data from 500 hospitals. Previous studies had lacked the scope of the new JAMA study.

The JAMA study found that the older the patient, the more likely they were to have undiagnosed uterine cancer at the time of the procedure. And the more likely they were to have morcellation spread the cancer throughout their bodies. This risk is not present with traditional laparoscopic surgery. Earlier studies had found a link between morcellation and the risk of cancer, but lacked a large enough sample size to isolate the fact that older women were more likely to suffer from this complication. The new study’s greater resolution was able to uncover these new details related to morcellation cancer lawsuits.

Several types of common laparascopic surgeries use morcellation, including:

• myomectomy (removal of fibroids)
• hysterectomy (removal of the uterus)
• oophorectomy (removal of the ovaries)
• salpingectomy (removal of fallopian tubes)

Morcellation cancer lawsuits have alleged that the manufacturers of morcellation devices were aware — or reasonably should have been aware — of the serious risks associated with these surgical tools before they offered them for sale. These lawsuits seek to recoup medical costs, and compensation for lost wages and pain and suffering.