Hospitals Must Stop Using Hysterectomy Devices: Johnson & Johnson
An earlier research recently warned that the usage of power morcellator, a cylindrical device used in surgical removal of uterus, can disburse cancer cells to other parts of the body. Fearing an upshot of diseases like cancer in women, Johnson & Johnson made an announcement urging doctors and hospitals to withdraw employing the device in procedures like minimally invasive hysterectomy, dislodging benign non-cancerous tumors and treatment of uterine leiomyosarcoma.
The company will be addressing its customers all over the world for a recall of laparoscopic power morcellators. During April, Johnson & Johnson stopped the sales and distribution of the device after receiving notification by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) opposing use of the surgical tool in mincing tumors and fibroids that can be extracted by simple gynecological procedures, reports Fox News.
The J&J officials deferred offering its verdict on the devise's safety saying they were waiting for more evidence and advice from experts. The J&J's Ethicon division concerning the sale of devices wrote to its customers about the FDA's warning on device safety earlier last month saying it "demonstrated the complexity of this issue."
Every year nearly 500,000 women undergo hysterectomy for endometrial cancer and fibroids, say data reports by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Uterine cancers or sarcomas that remain undetected during surgeries can push bits of cancer tumors through the abdomen. This can lead to formation of new cancer tumors inside the body.
"The bottom line is that it looks like the sarcoma risk is much higher than we originally thought," said Steven McCarus, consultant at Ethicon and chief of gynecological surgery at Florida Hospital Celebration Health, reports Fox News.
