A young and passionate powerlifter tragically lost his life to sepsis just two months after his high school graduation and one month following his engagement. His father has filed a lawsuit, claiming medical negligence after doctors failed to thoroughly clean a wound stitched with “plant matter.”
Eighteen-year-old Ethan Cantrell passed away on August 20, 2024. His death occurred merely five days after he received treatment for an arm injury at Good Samaritan Regional Medical Center in Corvallis, Oregon.
Cantrell, who came from a long line of loggers, sustained an arm stab wound on August 15, 2024, while working with wood. He sought medical attention at the hospital, where, according to a lawsuit reported by NBC News, doctors attempted to flush out the wound with saline before tightly suturing it.
An X-ray requested by one of the two doctors named in the lawsuit showed “soft tissue air” but found no bone issues or visible foreign objects in Cantrell’s arm.
Following the procedure, Cantrell was sent home with a seven-day antibiotic prescription.
However, later that day, Cantrell’s condition worsened as his arm began to swell and his temperature rose to 102 degrees Fahrenheit. Despite his mother’s call to the hospital, a nurse reassured her there was no need for alarm since he was on antibiotics, the lawsuit claims.
Cantrell’s arm was “more painful and swollen” the following day, and he started having difficulty breathing on top of persistent headaches, according to the court doc.
The teen’s mom rushed him to the emergency room that night, where he was treated by the same doctor who discharged him. The doctor then concluded that Cantrell likely had a deep-tissue infection.
His condition continued to plummet throughout the night, but the doctor still refrained from removing the sutures or prescribing additional antibiotics, according to the lawsuit.
Within a few hours of arriving at the hospital, Cantrell’s infected arm swelled to nearly triple its normal size and started leaking fluid.
When a doctor finally cut the wound open, they discovered “over 12 pieces of organic plant matter, including twigs, pine needles, and moss,” the lawsuit said.
The suit noted that wood, dirt and pine needles generally aren’t flagged on X-ray scans.
Cultures of the removed matter confirmed a bacterial infection. By then, Cantrell’s condition was life-threatening, and his arm was amputated up to his shoulder by a separate surgical team at the Oregon Health & Science University hospital
Cantrell’s health continued to wane even after the amputation, and he died on Aug. 20, 2024 from “necrotizing soft tissue infection from a puncture injury in his right arm,” the suit said.
The lawsuit is seeking $100 million in damages for Cantrell’s death.
The jack-of-all-trades athlete proposed to his high school sweetheart just one month before his death, according to his obituary.
“His tireless dedication to becoming the best version of himself was an inspiration to those around him, and despite setbacks from football injuries and illness, Ethan never wavered in his determination,” his obituary read.
Cantrell is survived by his parents, his three sisters, his fiancée, and his “future in-laws,” according to his obituary.
