The heartbroken family of a promising high school graduate who died in agony after receiving stitches for an arm injury is suing the surgeon, alleging a fatal error was made. Ethan Cantrell, 18, passed away on August 20, 2024, five days after being treated for a wound sustained when he fell on a branch while chopping wood.
Initial Treatment and Alleged Negligence
The high school football star was initially treated at Good Samaritan Regional Medical Center in Corvallis, western Oregon, where a surgeon closed the wound. However, the doctor allegedly failed to remove pine needles and moss that were lodged inside the cut, according to a $100 million lawsuit filed by his family. The legal filing also claims that medics did not perform CT scans, which could have revealed the deadly debris, and failed to administer appropriate antibiotics that might have saved his life.
Agonizing Decline
Cantrell suffered five days of unbearable pain, including a raging fever caused by fast-spreading bacteria that made his arm double in size. Surgeons at a second hospital scrambled to save him by amputating the limb from his shoulder, but he passed away after five days of agony, according to the lawsuit seen by Oregon Live.
"It's just a sad, sad case," Brent Barton, the lawyer representing Cantrell's estate, told the outlet. The family's lawsuit targets the Corvallis hospital, two doctors, and the professional group that employs them, Mary's Peak Emergency Physicians. The Daily Mail has reached out to the defendants for comment.
Hospital Response
"Our sympathies are with all who have been impacted by this loss," Tyler Jacobsen, vice president and chief legal officer of Samaritan Health Services, told Oregon Live on Tuesday. "We take all concerns about patient care seriously, and we will respond through the appropriate legal process."
Cantrell was a recent graduate of Alsea High School, located in a rural western Oregon community about 50 miles northwest of Eugene. His heartbroken mother said he had just gotten engaged to his high school sweetheart and was well-known as the star of his football team, also playing basketball and powerlifting. He looked forward to a career in the logging industry, following four previous generations of his family, according to his obituary.
Details of the Incident
On the morning of August 15, 2024, Cantrell was chopping wood in rural Alsea when he fell from a log and punctured his arm on a branch. He first sought care at Good Samaritan Regional Medical Center's emergency room, about 40 minutes away. The family's lawsuit states that he was seen by a doctor after waiting about an hour. The doctor diagnosed a laceration, washed it with saline, stitched it, and sent Cantrell home with an antibiotic.
"As a general rule, laceration wounds are closed after cleaning," the lawsuit reads. "Deeper puncture wounds are left open or only loosely closed to allow drainage. Tightly closing a deep wound, especially if it may contain foreign material, increases the risk of infection." Hours later, Cantrell developed a fever of 102.5 degrees and a painfully swollen arm. His mother called the hospital, but a nurse reportedly told them it was likely COVID-19 and not to worry, without consulting a doctor.
Subsequent Treatment and Death
Cantrell took a COVID-19 test, which was negative, and returned to the hospital on August 17. Another doctor opened the wound and found "12 pieces of organic plant matter, including twigs, pine needles, and moss," according to the lawsuit. Cultures showed bacterial infection. His condition rapidly deteriorated, and he was airlifted to Oregon Health & Science University in Portland, where staff "immediately recognized Ethan's condition as life-threatening." Surgeons performed several operations, including amputating the arm at the shoulder, but could not save him. His relatives and fiancée were by his side when he died.
The family seeks $25 million in economic losses for medical costs and lost future income, and $75 million for his pain and suffering.
