Passive reporting of adverse events with power morcellators put women at risk for cancer spread

Doctors and hospitals failed to tell federal authorities that a medical device used in gynecological procedures could upstage deadly cancer, worsening women’s odds of survival, according to a new report issued by the Government Accountability Office (GAO). The device in question is called a power morcellator, a surgical tool fitted with a tube-like blade that shreds uterine fibroids or entire uteruses within the uterine cavity and removes the tissue through a small incision in the abdomen. The procedure was preferred for hysterectomies and myomectomies (uterine fibroid removal) over open surgeries because it offers less risk of infection and shorter recovery ... Read More