Surgeon Accused of Removing Healthy Kidney, Leaving Woman in Kidney Failure

A Minnesota woman is suing after what her lawyers are calling a devastating medical error — claiming a surgeon took out her healthy kidney instead of her spleen, leaving her in stage 5 kidney failure and dependent on dialysis.

Wendy Rappaport, now in her 80s, had checked into Abbott Northwestern Hospital in Minneapolis on March 28, 2022, for what was supposed to be a spleen removal. According to her lawsuit, she was diagnosed with a spleen abscess or rupture and prepped for surgery.

But instead of removing the infected spleen, the lawsuit claims surgeon Dr. Devon Callahan mistakenly removed Rappaport’s fully functioning left kidney. A post-op CT scan allegedly revealed the error — her spleen was still there and infected, while her kidney was gone.

Rappaport’s condition quickly deteriorated. Court documents say she suffered respiratory failure, fluid buildup around her lungs, and heart complications. She was hospitalized for two months and now lives with stage 5 kidney disease, the most severe stage of chronic kidney failure, requiring regular dialysis.

“This should have never happened,” said her attorney, Aaron Lawrence. “Where were the checks and balances? It was completely unnecessary and totally avoidable.”

In a statement, Allina Health, which operates the hospital, said it could not comment on patient care specifics due to privacy laws, but disputed the lawsuit’s portrayal of events. “Court filings don’t accurately reflect the full picture of the patient’s condition, or the life-saving medical care provided. We intend to vigorously defend the care that was provided,” the hospital said.

Dr. Callahan, now reportedly practicing at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles, has not publicly responded to the allegations.

The lawsuit accuses him of causing permanent, irreversible harm by removing the wrong organ, leading to acute kidney injury and long-term damage to Rappaport’s renal function.

This isn’t the first time a high-profile surgical error has made headlines. In recent years, other hospitals have faced scrutiny for transplanting organs into the wrong patients or mishandling body parts post-mortem.

As Rappaport fights to manage her health, her legal team says the lawsuit is about more than just accountability — it’s about making sure such a mistake doesn’t happen to someone else.