After a short while, staff were unable to revive Brian, and he was declared dead. Shakanowski removed an organ, Brian’s spleen, and placed it on a table. Employees were reportedly surprised to find the lever easily recognizable. One reported feeling sick to his stomach.
misidentified organs
Shakanovsky’s removed liver weighed more than 2,100 grams, measuring approximately 23 by 19 by 11 centimeters. The Health Department said that the enlarged spleen weighs a maximum of 500 grams and is only 20 cm long. Furthermore, the liver and spleen are physically different and have different colors and consistency. The liver is on the right side of the abdomen, while the spleen is on the left, which is the side where Brian reported pain.
Shakanowski insisted that the liver be labeled as the spleen and returned to the OR three times that evening to try to convince the staff that it was the spleen. A pathology report of the so-called spleen described it as “a broadly recognizable 2,106 gram liver”.
An autopsy revealed that Brian’s spleen was intact, his liver was missing, and his inferior vena cava was severed. The inferior vena cava is the largest vein in the body and returns deoxygenated blood from the lower body through the liver to the heart.
Amidst the investigation into the horrific circumstances of Brian’s death, investigators also noted that this was not the first time that Shakanowski had removed the wrong organ. In 2023, he incorrectly removed a portion of a patient’s pancreas when he intended to remove an adrenal gland. He later reported that the adrenal gland had “moved”.
The lawsuit filed by Brian’s widow is still pending. She told NBC News: “He would want no one else to be hurt by his death, I think that’s what the criminal charges that are being brought will do. If we have to suffer through this and he has to die, at least now no one else will be hurt by this guy.”
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