Skip to content
Bramble

US

Ohio cancer patient sues hospital, saying the wrong leg was amputated

Sharon Jacks, 74, an Army veteran, is suing Selby General Hospital in Marietta, Ohio, and eight other defendants after her left leg was amputated instead of her right in September 2025. The hospital called it an "avoidable event".

8 outlets · 3L · 1C · 4R First reported Account updated

Updated (version 6). New coverage since the last version from Breitbart, Just the News, NBC News, The Times of India. Previously: “Ohio cancer patient sues hospital, saying surgeon amputated the wrong leg”.

Image: New York Post
Image: The Times of India
Image: Daily Mirror
Image: Just the News
Image: The Independent
Image: NBC News
Image: Fox News
Image: Breitbart

1 / 8

The story, neutrally told

Sharon Jacks, a 74-year-old Army veteran from Ohio, filed a lawsuit this month in Washington County Common Pleas Court in Marietta, saying her left leg was amputated in September 2025 when the surgery was meant to remove her right leg. She and her husband named nine defendants, including the hospital and her medical and surgical teams, and allege gross negligence, battery and reckless conduct. According to her attorney, Brad Layne, she had the originally intended right-leg amputation four months later, leaving her a double amputee with both legs removed below the knee; the Daily Mirror instead reported that she woke with both limbs gone.

The operation was recommended to treat squamous cell carcinoma, a type of skin cancer, and Layne says she has been cancer-free since the correct operation. Layne said the surgeon marked the correct leg but amputated the wrong one, and that the team realised the error during the procedure and told her family before she woke. The hospital called the incident an "avoidable event", said it retrained all its surgical staff, and said the staff involved are no longer in their positions.

NBC News reported that the surgeon, Dr. Gregory Krivchenia II, a named defendant, is still licensed in Ohio; a receptionist at his former practice said he is retired, and he did not immediately comment. Layne said the amputation has changed everything for his client, from dressing to cooking.

Every sentence links to the reporting it rests on.

Left3 outlets

Framing
NBC News gives the most detailed account, with the complaint's language and the surgeon's licence status; the Independent leads with the lawyer's quote; the Daily Mirror is sensational and says she woke with both legs gone.
Emphasis
Clinical failure, the lawyer's account, the hospital's retraining, and (NBC) the surgeon's continued licence.
Leaves out or plays down
The Mirror leaves out the four-month gap before the second amputation.
Charged language
“catastrophically wrong”“catastrophe”
For example
“A medical 'catastrophe' took place when Sharon Jacks, 74, went into hospital for a planned operation on her right leg” — Daily Mirror
“‘She went into surgery and, when she woke up, the wrong leg had been taken off,’ Sharon Jacks’ lawyer says” — The Independent
“74-year-old army vet sues hospital after surgeons amputate wrong leg” — NBC News

Centre1 outlet

Framing
The Times of India rewrites the NBC report for an international audience, leading with the wrong-leg error and the double amputation.
Emphasis
Quotes from the 32-page complaint and the lawyer's remarks on the mark left on the correct leg.
Leaves out or plays down
Does not name the hospital's separate review findings or cite its own sourcing beyond NBC.
Charged language
“mishap”
For example
“The hospital called this mishap an "avoidable event"” — The Times of India
““The mark was still on the correct leg after the wrong leg had been taken off,” Layne claimed.” — The Times of India

Right4 outlets

Framing
The New York Post and Fox News lead with the word "allegedly" and vivid wording about the error; Just the News gives a short summary that credits NBC.
Emphasis
The lawyer's 'defies explanation' quote, the marked correct leg, and the hospital's admission.
Leaves out or plays down
Just the News omits the cancer type and the four-month gap; the Post and Fox do not mention the retraining.
Charged language
“chopped off”“Defies explanation”
For example
“An Ohio woman is now a double amputee after her surgeon allegedly chopped off the wrong leg” — Fox News
“Cancer patient sues hospital after surgeon allegedly amputated wrong leg: ‘Defies explanation’” — New York Post
“The hospital says it has retrained all its surgical staff following the botched surgery” — Just the News