Man Received Cancerous Lungs in Transplant, Lawsuit Filed

Jamie Sheller

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A lawsuit has been filed that claims that a man received cancerous lungs during a transplant and then died six months later. 

A spokeswoman for the Penn Health System, Susan Phillips, stated that the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania had no way of knowing that the lungs were unhealthy and never gave Tony Grier or his family any misinformation.

Grier was diagnosed with pulmonary sarcoidosis, which causes lung tissue to harden, in 1986.  He put his name on a transplant waiting list and finally received a pair of donor lungs in 2005.  Grier remained hospitalized from the time of his surgery to his death on July 16, 2007 at the age of 43.

Grier's mother, who brought the suit, said that Penn told Grier that he was receiving healthy lungs from an 18-year-old.