Man Gets $400,000 for Wayward Surgical Towel
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HOUSTON — A man suffering from colon cancer received $400,000 in a lawsuit settlement with a doctor who left a towel in his abdomen when he stitched the man up after surgery.
William R. Miller Jr., 70, complained of pain after the operation at the University of Texas M.D. Anderson Cancer Center in 1999. Doctors waited 73 days before they operated and found the towel wrapped around his small intestine.
Ben Martin, a Dallas lawyer representing Miller, said the $400,000 settlement against Dr. John Skibber was fair, given a section of Miller’s small intestine was damaged by the towel and had to be removed during the surgery.
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