Woman who had wrong leg amputated during surgery for cancer treatment sues hospital
Por Owen Scott — – World RSS Feed
Woman who had wrong leg amputated during surgery for cancer treatment sues hospital
‘She went into surgery and, when she woke up, the wrong leg had been taken off,’ Sharon Jacks’ lawyer says
Owen Scott Wednesday 30 September 2026 11:57 BST
- Bookmark
- Comments Go to comments
Bookmark popover
Removed from bookmarks
Close popover
Become an Independent member to bookmark this article
Want to bookmark your favourite articles and stories to read or reference later? Start your Independent Membership today.
Already a member?
Log in
Your support helps us to tell the story
Read more Support Now
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it’s investigating the financials of Elon Musk’s pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, ‘The A Word’, which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.
At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.
The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.
Your support makes all the difference. Read more
A woman who had the wrong leg removed during surgery is suing the hospital after she was left a double amputee.
Surgeons at Selby General Hospital in Marietta, Ohio, removed 74-year-old Sharon Jacks’ lower left leg in September 2025 when they were supposed to remove her lower right leg.
Her right leg was scheduled to be amputated as part of her treatment for squamous cell carcinoma, her attorney, Brad Layne, told The New York Times.
Squamous cell carcinoma is the second-most common form of non-melanoma skin cancer, after basal cell carcinoma.
“She went into surgery and, when she woke up, the wrong leg had been taken off,” Layne told WBNS 10TV. “I can tell you from what I’ve determined that the surgeon actually marked the correct leg, pre-surgery.
“The mark was still on the correct leg after the wrong leg had been taken off.”
open image in galleryThe Independent has contacted Selby General Hospital, part of the Memorial Health System, for comment.
Layne told The Times that Jacks had the correct leg removed four months after the other surgery took place. That left her as a double amputee.
“Complete and total failure by multiple medical professionals caused this catastrophe,” the attorney said in a statement obtained by WCHS. “Now every day for the rest of her life, Sharon Jacks must live with the consequences of those failures.”
Speaking to WBNS 10TV, he argued that records suggested checks took place during surgery with the goal of ensuring that the operation’s details were correct.
“Every person in that operating room is responsible to make sure that (sic) that is verified before moving forward,” he said. “The records say that that happened twice, but somehow Ms Jacks is missing a leg that should not have been removed.”
The lawsuit alleges that Jacks was left with physical injury, permanent disability and medical expenses, as well as “humiliation” and emotional distress.
open image in galleryThe 74-year-old, who is suing both Selby General Hospital and her surgical team, is seeking both punitive and compensatory damages, Layne told The Times.
In a statement obtained by WBNS 10TV, Selby General Hospital said that operating room procedures were not followed.
“Our proactive review of what took place confirmed this was an avoidable event and that our expected operating room procedures were not followed,” the statement read. “Those involved were held accountable for their actions and are no longer in their positions.”
“Our clinical and leadership teams have implemented corrective measures across our organization to prevent a situation like this from recurring,” the statement continued. “This included mandatory retraining of all surgical employees to reinforce our patient safety policies.”
The Independent has also contacted Kayser, Layne & Clark (Layne’s law firm) for comment.
More about
OhioHospitalsskin cancerUnited StatesU.S.Lawsuit
Join our commenting forum
Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies
Most popular
Popular videos
Bulletin
Read next
Fonte: – World RSS Feed
