Doctors lost a man's 'likely cancerous' tumor before they could test it. Now he's suing.
Jeremy Morton-Maxson was already dealing with news no one wanted to hear. At the age of just 39, he had gone to doctors after experiencing painful urinary issues, which raised red flags for the carpenter who comes from a family with a history of bladder cancer.
After waiting upward of five months to get in to see a specialist at UW Medicine in Seattle, Morton-Maxson was informed in August of 2022 that a tumor was present on his bladder and that it was "likely cancer," according to a lawsuit filed this summer and originally reported on by the Seattle Times.
Morton-Maxson was urged to have prompt surgery to remove the mass so that the hospital’s pathology department could determine if it was malignant, said a press release provided by Morton-Maxson's attorney, Austin Neff. He did just that two days later at UW Medicine Northwest.
It was then the worst of all waiting games began. Morton-Maxson waited weeks for the call from his doctor, eventually resorting to sending daily messages and making frequent phone calls to the clinic, becoming increasingly panicked at the lack of response.
“When I didn’t hear back, I began calling the urologist, but as anyone knows, gone are the days when you could actually reach anyone on the phone,” Morton-Maxson said in the press release. “I began calling repeatedly and sending notes on the physician group’s electronic medical records portal, MyChart, figuring if I made a big enough pest of myself, they would call me back.”
It was finally in early September that he got the call he had been dreading, only to receive news of an entirely unexpected complication: UW Medicine had lost the tumor before it could be analyzed, something they formally admitted in later court documents.
“If the tumor was malignant, a pathology report would have told us how aggressive the cancer is and help his care team make critical decisions, including what targeted therapies would have served Jeremy best," Neff in a statement. "Now, because of UW’s actions, Jeremy is left with nothing but bad options.”
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More questions than answers
Indeed, Morton-Maxson was left with more questions than answers after the incident. Options for treatment are now less precise and up the air, causing stress that Morton-Maxson said has colored every part of his life.
He was offered two courses of action following the news: Undergo preventative chemotherapy in case the tumor was malignant after all, or have invasive diagnostic procedures done every 60 days to reexamine the inside of his bladder, said court documents.
Morton-Maxson, who is very physically active not only by merit of his job but in his free time as well, did not find either course of action "acceptable," especially considering the doctor told him post-surgery that she believed she had "gotten all" of the tumor, meaning intervention in the form of intense chemotherapy may not even be necessary.
For Morton-Maxson, not knowing is the worst outcome of this saga so far.
“Anyone who has battled cancer knows the uncertainty surrounding the disease is crippling, and in my case, the uncertainty is amplified by the hospital’s mistake,” Morton-Maxson said in a statement. “I am a young man, and I wake up every morning with this hanging over my head."
While UW Medicine did admit to losing the tumor, they have denied other allegations made in the suit, according to court documents, including injury caused to Morton-Maxson.
In a statement emailed to USA TODAY, UW Medicine Spokeswoman Susan Gregg said the hospital was unable comment on specifics regarding pending litigation, but said, "UW Medicine cares deeply about our patients and takes concerns seriously. Our dedicated healthcare professionals work diligently to provide quality care. To support this goal, we examine and enhance processes as a part of our quality improvement program when needed."
Gregg did not respond to questions asking if an investigation was being conducted by the hospital.
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Lawsuit seeks accountability
The deciding factor for Morton-Maxson in filing the suit, according to court documents and a press statement, was administration's apparent unwillingness to address the issue.
“Had UW owned up to their error and apologized, we would not be here today," Morton-Maxson said.
Neff concurred, telling USA TODAY in an email, "A formal apology and a full explanation from hospital administration would have gone a long way. Unfortunately, UW chose silence. We look forward to full and final justice for Jeremy."
As for Morton-Maxson, he chose to forgo chemo and stick with a diagnostic procedure performed every 60 days. With the lawsuit, he is seeking monetary damages from UW to compensate for the anguish caused.
“I understand that we all make mistakes – I know how understaffed, overworked and underpaid hospital nurses and technicians are, which I am sure played into this,” Morton-Maxson said in a statement. “But in those instances, you need to hold up your hand and say, ‘I messed up and I am sorry.’ No one from UW has ever offered me an apology.”
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Washington man's tumor lost before cancer test done; hospital sued
