Neurosurgeon improperly selects area for surgery, patient dies

12:53   24 September, 2019

A neurosurgeon from New Zealand incorrectly selected the area for the operation to remove the cancerous tumor. As a result, the tumor could not be removed, and the patient died.

According to the RNZ website, the patient had a cancerous tumor of the brain that needed to be removed. Specialists identified a zone for surgical intervention with the help of special equipment and marked the skin of a man. But when the neurosurgeon performed the initial incision, it became obvious that the measurements were inaccurate, and he made an incision in the wrong place.

Then the doctor widened the hole in the patient’s bones towards the desired zone. But the operation had to be stopped, as further attempts to remove the tumor were too risky.

After some time, the man died from cancer.

Commissioner for Health and Disability Anthony Hill said that any neurosurgeon could be wrong, but stressed that such things are unacceptable. Hill recommended that the neurosurgeon apologize to the family of the deceased.



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