Man sues over alleged colonscopy mistake

‘Egregious act of malpractice’ cited

A Romeo man says he had to have his entire colon removed because a Rochester-based doctor and other defendants mistakenly lost track of the location of a cancerous polyp.

Roderick Arnold, 67, recently sued Dr. Kambiz Bral, Rochester Endoscopy and Surgery Center, North Oakland Gastroenterology Clinic in Rochester Hills and Oakland Digestive Health in Oakland County Circuit Court.

The removal of his colon has significantly altered Arnold’s life because he has virtually no control of his bowels, as they release spontaneously several times a day, his attorneys said. It requires him to wear an adult diaper and time his eating habits with outings.

“He deals with embarrassment and inconvenience everyday as a result of this very preventable mistake,” said one of Arnold’s attorneys, Brian McKeen. “It’s an egregious act of malpractice. It’s something that should never have happened, and this doctor need to be held responsible.”

An attorney representing the defendants could not be reached for comment.

McKeen and Todd Schroeder said when Bral performed a colonoscopy, many polyps were found but were all placed in a single container, and no mapping was done to keep track of where each polyp was discovered. One poly was found to be cancerous, and because it was unknown from where it came, Arnold required a full colectomy in January 2019.

“Had the doctor taken the time to separate the polyps from the colonoscopy as is procedure, a less radical surgery could have been performed and Roderick’s quality of life preserved,” McKeen said.

The full colectomy was “far more extensive than needed to be due this physician’s negligent error,” McKeen added.

It also has affected Roderick’s health. In October 2020, he was hospitalized for a “lengthy” time and experienced severe abdominal pain “as a consequence of Dr. Bral’s negligence,” the lawsuit says. Roderick experienced a cardiac arrest last December “for which Dr. Bral’s negligence played a role,” the lawsuit says.

Arnold has virtually given up his occupation as a musician and music teacher due to his condition, the attorneys said.

He experiences severe nausea and cramping, along with the spontaneous release of his bowels several times a day, they said.

“Roderick reports feeling like he has to be careful all of the time so as to avoid embarrassment,” the lawsuit says.

“A lot of measures have to be taken,” Schroeder said, for Arnold to enjoy life outside of his home. He and his wife have to time his eating and their outings to reduce the chance of an incident.

Arnold, who suffers from diverticulosis, went to the emergency room in late 2018, complaining of severe abdominal pain, leading to the colonoscopy and colectomy.

Arnold accuses Bral of negligence, and the three other defendants of “vicarious liablity.”

The lawsuit, assigned to Judge Daniel P. O’Brien, seeks more than $25,000 in damages.