Lawyer says penis amputation was authorized

Patient says he didn't consent, doctor's says cancer made it necessary

Health care videos

Health care fight over abortion funding
Nov. 9: Controversy over health care reform may have shifted from public option to abortion funding. The Stupak amendment, tacked on the House bill, may affect even women using private insurers. NBC's Kelly O’Donnell reports from Washington.

House health reform bill showed bipartisanship

House health bill faces Senate showdown

Health care reform by January?

McCaskill: Moderate Dems working on cost control

INTERACTIVE

Dose of reality
Do health care reform headlines leave you saying “huh?” Visit msnbc.com's guide to health reform and send us claims you'd like fact-checked.

updated 1:32 p.m. ET Sept. 26, 2008

LOUISVILLE, Kentucky - A lawyer for a Kentucky doctor being sued over the amputation of a patient's penis said Friday the procedure was "medically necessary" and authorized by the patient.

Attorney Clay Robinson said Dr. John Patterson performed the surgery because the patient, Phillip Seaton, 61, had cancer.

Patterson was given permission to perform any medical procedure deemed necessary, Robinson said.

Story continues below ↓

advertisement | your ad here

"Mr. Seaton had no reasonable option other than to have the cancer removed," Robinson said in a written statement.

Seaton and his wife, Deborah, sued in Shelby County Circuit Court over the amputation, which took place during a scheduled circumcision to treat inflammation.

The lawsuit claims Patterson removed Seaton's penis without consulting either Phillip or Deborah Seaton, or giving them an opportunity to seek a second opinion.

Robinson and Seaton's attorney, Kevin George, said postoperative tests showed that Seaton had cancer.

Click for related content

Man claims penis amputated without consent

"Mr. Seaton's problem was not the surgery, it was the cancer," Robinson said.

The Seatons are seeking unspecified compensatory and punitive damages from Patterson, Commonwealth Urology and Dr. Oliver James, the anesthesiologist during the procedure.

The Seatons' suit is similar to one in which an Indianapolis man was awarded more than $2.3 million in damages after he claimed his penis and left testicle were removed without his consent during surgery for an infection in 1997.

Also in msnbc.com Health
  Suicide toll rises in slump-hit areas
  Stroller company announces major recall
Unlikely friends: Why we love animal pairs
Why bad memories don't fade away
  Animal Tracks: Eye candy for animal lovers