Chemo Port Lawsuit

Lawsuits are being filed by people who were injured or needed surgery when their chemotherapy port failed, broke, or leaked medicine.

What You Can Do & How We Can Help

The Schmidt Firm, PLLC is currently accepting chemo port induced injury cases in all 50 states. If you or somebody you know was injured or needed surgery when a chemotherapy port failed or broke, you should contact our lawyers immediately for a free case consultation. Please use the form below to contact our Defective Medical Device Litigation Group or call toll free 24 hours a day at (866) 920-0753.

What is a Chemo Port?

Chemotherapy ports are medical devices that are implanted under the skin of a patient to make it easier for healthcare professionals to inject medicines and take blood draws as part of a cancer treatment plan.

Chemo ports consist of two parts: an injection port, where the needle is inserted to deliver chemotherapy or other medications; and a long flexible tube called a catheter that delivers the medicine to a vein.

Types of Chemo Ports

There are many types of chemo ports, including single lumen (one access point) and double lumen (two access points). Some of the most popular devices on the market today include:

• Bard PowerPort M.R.I. Port Catheter
• Port-a-Cath
• TIVAD (Totally Implanted Venous Access Device)
• Mediport
• And more

Risks & Benefits of Chemo Ports for Cancer Treatment

When they work, implanted ports are usually better for patients because they help prevent “chemo veins,” a problem in which smaller veins are severely damaged by harsh medicines and repeated IVs.

But when defective chemo ports do not work, patients who are already medically fragile may develop life-threatening side effects, or require emergency surgery to remove the defective port and catheter system.

What is the Problem?

In recent years, Bard has faced a growing number of lawsuits from patients who were injured when their PowerPort broke, cracked, leaked, caused infections, or other life-threatening complications. In many lawsuits, patients who were already very sick with cancer were forced to undergo a major surgery to remove the PowerPort and treat complications.

Chemo Port Lawsuits May Be Centralized in MDL

Chemo port lawsuits are being filed nationwide, but they may be centralized in Multi-District Litigation (MDL), which coordinates a lot of similar lawsuits into one court, under one judge. In the future, lawsuits may be selected to go to trial, where juries will decide whether to award financial compensation to people who were injured.

Chemo Port Lawsuit Filed by Woman Injured by Bard PowerPort M.R.I.

In June 2023, a lawsuit was filed by a woman from Iowa who was severely injured when her Bard PowerPort M.R.I. broke inside her body and sent pieces into her heart.

The woman was implanted with the Bard PowerPort for the treatment of breast cancer. In March 2021, her chemo port stopped would not flushed. Doctors were unable to remove the blockage, and determined that her Bard PowerPort would need to be surgically removed.

According to her lawsuit, “physicians found the PowerPort had fractured, and they were unable to find the missing fractured piece in the plaintiff’s body.” She was forced to undergo a second emergency surgery to locate and remove the broken piece of her PowerPort.

Eventually, doctors found the fractured piece had migrated to her heart.

Due to the defective chemo port, she had to undergo a major surgery and still faces a future risk of severe injuries and emotional distress. She also has ongoing heart problems, such as cardiac tamponade.

Her chemo port lawsuit was filed on June 23, 2023 against Beckton, Dickinson and Company; C.R. Bard Inc.; and Bard Access Systems Inc. in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Iowa — Case Number 4:23-cv-00214-SHL-SBJ.

Chemo Port Side Effects & Complications

• Death
• Fracture of the chemo port
• Infection
• Migration of broken pieces
• Hemorrhage (bleeding internally)
• Cardiac / pericardial tamponade (pressure caused by blood around the heart)
• Abnormal heart rhythm
• Other symptoms similar to a heart attack
• Pain
• Damage to internal organs, tissue, or blood vessels
• Need for surgery to remove the defective chemo port
• And more

Do I have a Chemo Port Lawsuit?

The Schmidt Firm, PLLC is currently accepting chemo port induced injury cases in all 50 states. If you or somebody you know was injured or needed surgery when a chemotherapy port failed or broke, you should contact our lawyers immediately for a free case consultation. Please use the form below to contact our Defective Medical Device Litigation Group or call toll free 24 hours a day at (866) 920-0753.

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