After botched appendix surgery, man sues UW Medicine for removing wrong organ

A local man is fighting for his life after an alleged botched surgery; now he’s suing the doctor from the University of Washington Medicine (UW Medicine) and the state.

The suit alleges that a simple appendix removal went horribly wrong when the surgeon removed a chunk of his colon instead, nearly killing him.

The victim, George Piano of Lake Forest Park, said that he wants to prevent this “medical negligence” from happening to anyone else.

Piano said that he is still suffering from what should have been a standard appendectomy nearly a year ago.

“It’s been a hell of a year,” Piano told KIRO 7. “I’m not the same person I was when this started.”

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Last December, he went to the emergency room at UW Medical Center Northwest for abdominal pain and was diagnosed with appendicitis. Doctors said he needed his appendix removed.

After surgery, though, he woke up and was in much worse pain than before.

In a recently filed lawsuit, Piano claims that instead of taking out his appendix, the doctor removed a piece of his colon and punctured the organ, leaving the appendix that needed surgery in place.

“I was suffering from a leaking colon that created sepsis and infection. And I almost died from it,” George Piano told KIRO 7.

A follow-up appointment at UW Medicine called for a CT scan, which confirmed Piano’s appendix has not been removed. One of Piano’s lawyers, Edward Moore, said in a press release Piano’s appendix was removed on Dec. 8, 2022 — two days after the initial surgery — but the damage was already done.

Moore says he’s seen botched surgeries but nothing like this.

“I’ve never heard of someone who was unable to locate an appendix,” Moore said. “For it to result in this kind of harm and disruption is mind-boggling.”

Piano had to go through four additional surgeries, needed an ileostomy bag, and had an open wound the size of a pool ball in his abdomen for months, all while dealing with intense pain.

“Naturally, this course of events disrupted their lives in countless ways. Neither George or (his wife) Betsy expected to spend upwards of a year dealing with open wounds, horrific pain, multiple hospitalizations, constant medical care and extended infirmity. George will live with the wounds, related scars and sequelae of this surgical misadventure for the rest of his life,” Piano’s lawyers noted in the press release.

Since the medical ordeal, George Piano told KIRO 7 he also has lost 40 pounds, spent 53 days total in the hospital, has anxiety, and is dealing with short-term memory loss. He also needed to delay seeking treatment for cancer.

“George has suffered numerous medical problems that did not exist prior to the Dec. 6, 2022, surgery … He had to be treated for an infection caused by the surgery, delayed seeking cancer treatment, and endured extreme pain,” Moore added in his statement.

“To watch someone you love, your family member go through that kind of trauma. It’s horrifying, it is,” Betsy Piano said to KIRO 7.

Piano’s lawsuit has accused the original surgeon of medical negligence.

At this point, the lawsuit isn’t asking for a specific monetary value. The attorney says it should be up to the state’s medical board to on whether the surgeon accused should be allowed to practice.

The University of Washington responded to KIRO 7’s request for a comment, saying, “We strive to provide the best possible care to all of our patients. Their safety and well-being is deeply important to us. The suit was just filed Thursday, so given the timeline, we are not able to comment on the specifics of the case.”

Contributing: KIRO 7