Maine Jury Awards $17 Million After Surgeon Removed Woman's Bladder Instead of an Ovarian Cyst

A Kennebec County, Maine jury handed down a $17 million verdict Thursday against Northern Light Health and its now-shuttered Inland Hospital, finding the hospital responsible for a 2023 surgical error that left a Skowhegan woman without most of her bladder.

Emily Mitchell went in for a laparoscopic procedure to remove an ovarian cyst, according to WMTW. She never consented to having her bladder removed. But according to the 2025 lawsuit, pathologists later confirmed the tissue taken out during that surgery contained fragments of her bladder.

After the procedure, Mitchell experienced intense pain and struggled to urinate. She was transferred to Eastern Maine Medical Center, where surgeons performing an emergency procedure discovered most of her bladder was gone, per WMTW's reporting.

What followed was eight months of makeshift survival. Mitchell relied on bilateral nephrostomy tubes, essentially draining urine directly from her kidneys, while fighting recurrent urinary tract infections and kidney infections, her attorneys said in the lawsuit. She underwent multiple procedures before being referred to a provider in Massachusetts, where surgeons built her a neobladder using a section of her small intestine.

The Kennebec County jury sided with Mitchell on Thursday, according to News Center Maine, awarding her $17 million to cover past and future medical expenses, emotional distress, pain, and permanent impairment. Attorneys involved in the case say it's the largest medical malpractice verdict in the county's history.

Susan Faunce, an attorney with Berman & Simmons representing Mitchell, said in a statement that the verdict gives the family closure. "For Emily and her family, this is the closure they've needed for a long time," Faunce said. "They can finally begin to move forward, knowing that what happened to them was seen, heard, and acknowledged."

Northern Light Inland Hospital has since closed, according to WMTW, though the reporting reviewed does not establish that the closure was connected to this case.

What the Surgery Was Supposed to Be

Ovarian cysts are common and most are harmless, according to the Cleveland Clinic. Surgery becomes an option only when a cyst is causing symptoms or growing, and the type of procedure depends on the cyst's size and how it appears on ultrasound. A laparoscopic cyst removal is generally considered a lower-risk, minimally invasive procedure. It is not supposed to involve the bladder at all.

This case was notable beyond the dollar figure because it was not a complication inherent to a risky operation. It was a case where pathology afterward showed bladder tissue in what should have been ovarian cyst tissue, meaning the surgical team removed the wrong organ tissue without recognizing it during the procedure.

What Remains Unresolved

The available reporting does not specify whether the surgeon or surgeons involved faced any licensing action, discipline, or separate proceedings from the Maine Board of Licensure in Medicine. Details about whether Northern Light Health plans to appeal the verdict were not available in the reporting reviewed. Medical malpractice verdicts of this size are frequently appealed, and a $17 million judgment against a health system is typically contested before any payout is finalized.

Northern Light Health's own public response to the verdict was not included in the reporting reviewed. A jury verdict establishes legal liability under Maine's civil standards but is not the same as a criminal finding. Northern Light Health retains the right to challenge the verdict through post-trial motions or appeal.

For Mitchell, the medical reality is permanent. A neobladder built from intestinal tissue is a major, life-altering reconstruction, not a full restoration of normal bladder function. The $17 million verdict addresses her financial and legal damages. It does not undo eight months of nephrostomy tubes and infections, or the underlying loss.