A Florida surgeon mistakenly removed a man’s liver, mistaking it for his spleen, causing him to die on the operating table, an attorney for his widow claims.
William Bryan, 70, of Muscle Shoals, Alabama, underwent surgery on Aug. 21 at Ascension Sacred Heart Emerald Coast Hospital in Miramar, Florida, for a spleen condition, according to a statement from Zarzaul Law, a personal injury law firm based in Pensacola, Florida.
The Walton County Sheriff’s Office said in a statement to NBC News on Wednesday that it is working with other authorities to investigate Bryan’s death.
William Bryan and his wife, Beverly Bryan, were visiting a rental property in Florida when Mr Bryan began experiencing “pain in his left side,” Beverly Bryan’s lawyer said.
He was admitted to the hospital for further tests, and the Bryans were reluctant to have the surgery in Florida, but were persuaded by general surgeon Dr. Thomas Shakhnowski and the hospital’s chief medical officer, Dr. Christopher Bacani, that leaving the hospital’s care could lead to serious complications.
Records show that both Shakhnovsky and Bacani were discussing how to proceed with Bryan’s treatment, Beverly Bryan’s attorney, Joe Zarzawl, said in a statement.
Zarzaul said Dr. Shakhnovsky performed a manual laparoscopic splenectomy on William Bryan that proved fatal.
“Dr. Shakhnovsky removed Mr. Brian’s liver but in the process severed a major blood vessel supplying the liver, causing immediate and devastating blood loss and death,” the statement said. “Although the surgeons termed the removed liver specimen a ‘spleen,’ it was only discovered postmortem that the organ removed was in fact a liver, not a spleen.”
Zarzawl claims that Shakhnovsky told Beverly Bryan that her husband’s spleen was so badly diseased that it was four times its normal size and had moved to the other side of the body, but Zarzawl said that in a normal human body, the liver is located on the other side of the abdomen and is much larger than the spleen.
Ascension Sacred Heart Emerald Coast Hospital said in a statement Wednesday that it was “conducting a thorough investigation” into Brian’s death and that it takes allegations such as those made by the family “very seriously.”
“Ascension Sacred Heart Emerald Coast Hospital has a long history of providing safe, quality care since opening in 2003,” the statement said. “Patient safety has always been and will continue to be our top priority. Our thoughts and prayers are with the family. We have the utmost respect for our patients’ privacy and do not comment on specific patient cases or ongoing litigation.”
According to the Cleveland Clinic, the typical human spleen is about the size of an avocado, and the typical human liver is about the size of a football.
“The family was informed that when Brian was rushed to hospital the spleen which caused his initial symptoms was still inside him and it was found to have a small cyst on its surface,” the statement said.
Zarzaul said Shakhnovsky made a similar mistake in 2023, removing part of his pancreas instead of his adrenal glands, but the lawsuit was settled privately.
The employment status of Messrs. Shakhnovsky and Bacani was not available Wednesday afternoon, and they did not respond to requests for comment.
The Walton County Sheriff’s Office said in a statement that authorities are investigating the circumstances of Bryan’s death.
“The Walton County Sheriff’s Office, in coordination with the District 1 Coroner’s Office and the State’s Attorney’s Office, is investigating the facts surrounding William Bryan’s death to determine if criminal activity occurred.”
Zarzaul said Beverly Bryan did not want Shakhnovsky to undergo any more surgeries.
“My husband died helplessly on Dr. Shakhnovsky’s operating table. I don’t want anyone else to die because of the incompetence of my husband, who should have known and was aware that he had previously made serious, life-changing surgical errors,” her lawyers said in a statement.
She is seeking criminal and civil charges, Zarzaul said.
“At The Zarzaul Law Firm, our goal is to bring justice to the Bryan family and make our communities safer with each and every case,” he said. “While most doctors do a great job keeping us healthy, there is a small minority who should not be practicing medicine.”
A Wednesday afternoon investigation by the Florida Medical Association found that Shakhnovsky’s medical license is valid, as is Bacani’s, records show.