Former patient sues Las Vegas clinic

by amyjudd | March 12, 2008 at 11:57 pm | 341 views | add comment

Endoscopy Center of Southern Nevada opened for administrative purposes today, but is under criminal investigation

As the story unravels of the dark practices going on at numerous Las Vegas clinics, previous patients are starting to question not only whether they contracted a deadly form of hepatitis, but also if their diagnosis of cancer was missed due to shoddy doctors and lack of consistent medical attention.
Also, the story of who first blew the whistle on the Las Vegas clinic scandal is starting to come to light. One member of the local Las Vegas media has suggested former UMC Hospital Chief, Lacy Thomas, who is currently under investigation by the Clark County District Attorney's office for his past business practices, may have more knowledge about the questionable activities at the clinic that have taken place in the last four years than has yet to be revealed. No public announcement has been released so far about authorities interegating Mr. Thomas or any other past or present individuals in the medical community about who tipped off authorities concerning the firestorm that has Federal, state and local agencies investigating the clinic's potentially dangerous treatment of the 40,000 patients now at risk for HIV and Hepatitis B and C.

Kevin Rexford’s main concern isn’t whether he left the Endoscopy Center of Southern Nevada with hepatitis. Rexford says he left the center with cancer.

The 46-year-old Las Vegas pharmacist filed a lawsuit in January 2007 against the center and Dr. Clifford Carrol, one of its owners. Rexford claims Carrol failed to recognize clear signs of colon cancer three years ago because he rushed through a colonoscopy in half the minimum recommended time.

The alleged failure allowed the cancer to metastasize to his liver and abdominal wall, medical experts claim on his behalf in court filings.

If the cancer had been caught at the time, Rexford would have had better than an 80 percent chance of survival, his experts argue. Now, doctors give him less than a one in 10 chance of living five years.

The lawsuit raises the possibility that problems at the clinic reached deeper than dangerous injection practices by clinic employees that might have exposed 40,000 patients to hepatitis B or C, or to HIV. The lawsuit questions the quality of medical care by the doctors themselves.

Medical experts say failure to find the cancer resulted from one of many flawed practices at the clinic, which is majority-owned by Dr. Dipak Desai, one of the state’s most powerful and politically connected physicians.