An Atlanta-area woman alleges that she was wrongly diagnosed with cancer and underwent an unneeded hysterectomy because of a labeling error.
Cassandra Barksdale and her attorneys filed a lawsuit Tuesday against Kaiser Permanente alleging the mix-up led to the surgery and months of physical and emotional pain.
According to the lawsuit, another patient's tissue sample was mistakenly labeled as belonging to Barksdale, who at age 43 then underwent a full hysterectomy on May 15, 2025, and was told she would get instructions about chemotherapy.
It's unclear how the mix-up occurred. In September, Barksdale was informed that a DNA analysis found the tissue sample showing an aggressive form of endometrial uterine cancer belonged to a different patient and not to her, the lawsuit says.
"She came into Kaiser Permanente looking for answers, and she left with a diagnosis that did not belong to her. And every step that was taken after that was based off of misinformation," her attorney Shannan Young said.
Barksdale went to Kaiser Permanente Southwood Comprehensive Medical Center in Jonesboro, Georgia, in early 2025 to seek treatment for heavy bleeding and fibroids, which are noncancerous growths in and around the uterus. She underwent a biopsy on March 10, 2025.
Barksdale said that after she got the biopsy results on March 17, 2025, she lived for months believing she had an aggressive type of cancer, sending her and her sons into a deep depression.
"I even started making funeral plans with them to let them know, you know, if I don't make it out, this is what I want done," Barksdale said.
Representatives for Kaiser Permanente wrote in a statement that "Ms. Barksdale should not have experienced this."
"We have highly trained staff and very thorough processes in place to prevent errors like this from taking place. After this occurred last year, we took immediate steps to ensure it could not happen again. We realize the impact of this incident and are committed to working with Ms. Barksdale and her counsel to resolve this in the most fair and accountable way we can."
Because of privacy laws, information about the other patient -- including what happened to her and whether cancer treatment was delayed -- isn't publicly available.
It is not clear just how often pathology samples are mislabeled or mixed-up during medical testing. An Ohio woman filed a similar lawsuit saying a 2019 error on a biopsy led to a misdiagnosis of lung cancer and unneeded surgery. Researchers studying prostate cancer discovered three cases of biopsy sample misidentification over 2 years, according to a 2011 research paper.
Labs have turned to a number of best practices to try and prevent errors, including barcode systems for specimen labeling and point-of-care testing.
The Georgia lawsuit asks for unspecified damages.
"There's no amount of money that's going to return back to her, her healthy organs, or erase the experiences and the pain that she's had. But our justice system recognizes that when somebody's negligence harms another person, accountability requires more than 'I'm sorry,'" Young said.
Facts Only
* A woman filed a lawsuit against Kaiser Permanente.
* The lawsuit alleges a labeling error caused a misdiagnosis and an unneeded hysterectomy.
* Another patient's tissue sample was mistakenly labeled as belonging to the plaintiff.
* At age 43, the plaintiff underwent a full hysterectomy on May 15, 2025.
* The plaintiff was told about chemotherapy following the surgery.
* In September, the plaintiff learned from a DNA analysis that the tissue sample showed aggressive endometrial uterine cancer belonging to a different patient.
* The plaintiff sought treatment for heavy bleeding and fibroids in early 2025.
* A biopsy was performed on March 10, 2025.
* The plaintiff received biopsy results on March 17, 2025.
* Representatives for Kaiser Permanente stated the plaintiff should not have experienced the incident and committed to resolution.
* Researchers studying prostate cancer found three cases of biopsy sample misidentification over two years.
Executive Summary
A woman in the Atlanta area filed a lawsuit against Kaiser Permanente alleging that a labeling error led to an unnecessary hysterectomy and subsequent physical and emotional suffering. The suit claims that another patient's tissue sample was mistakenly labeled as belonging to the plaintiff. This error allegedly resulted in the plaintiff being diagnosed with aggressive endometrial uterine cancer, leading to surgery on May 15, 2025, and instructions regarding chemotherapy. Prior to this, the woman sought treatment for heavy bleeding and fibroids, undergoing a biopsy on March 10, 2025. The lawsuit asserts that subsequent actions were based on misinformation received following the mislabeling.
Kaiser Permanente issued a statement acknowledging the incident, stating that Ms. Barksdale should not have experienced what occurred. The institution asserted that it has thorough processes in place to prevent such errors and committed to resolving the matter fairly and accountably with the plaintiff and her counsel. Information regarding the other patient is withheld due to privacy laws.