Cassandra Barksdale speaks with reporters about her lawsuit against Kaiser Permanente (WXIA).
A Georgia woman says a cascade of alleged medical errors led doctors to wrongly tell her she had an aggressive uterine cancer, prompting an irreversible hysterectomy before she later learned the biopsy used to make the diagnosis was not hers. Cassandra Barksdale filed a negligence lawsuit this week in Clayton County against Kaiser Permanente, a senior laboratory information analyst and five unidentified Kaiser agents or employees. The complaint alleges a specimen mix-up resulted in the removal of her uterus, cervix, ovaries, fallopian tubes and four lymph nodes even though she did not have cancer.
The lawsuit says Barksdale went to Kaiser Permanente’s Southwood Medical Center in January 2025 after experiencing abnormal uterine bleeding and uterine fibroids. On March 10, 2025, she underwent an endometrial biopsy.
Barksdale claims the personnel tasked with processing her tissue sample failed to correctly identify, label and track the specimen before it was sent to Quest Diagnostics for testing. Because of that alleged breakdown, the suit says, tissue from another patient was incorrectly assigned to Barksdale.
Two days later, the pathology report allegedly stated that Barksdale had “high grade endometrial uterine carcinoma with serous features.” On March 17, according to the complaint, she was told by phone that she had a “high-grade, aggressive” form of uterine cancer and would need further imaging to determine whether it had spread.
A CT scan performed shortly afterward found no evidence of cancer, the lawsuit says. Even so, Barksdale was referred to a gynecologic oncologist in Atlanta, where doctors allegedly recommended a total hysterectomy without conducting additional testing.
Acting on the diagnosis and her doctors’ advice, Barksdale underwent surgery on May 15, 2025. During the procedure, surgeons removed her uterus, cervix, ovaries, fallopian tubes and four lymph nodes, all of which were submitted for pathological review. The results found “no morphologically malignant cells” in the removed organs. A later surgical pathology report likewise concluded that “no carcinoma was identified, and no malignancy was seen in the entire endometrial cavity.”
Even after those findings, the lawsuit alleges, doctors continued to tell Barksdale she had cancer and should prepare for chemotherapy. She says she spent months in uncertainty before finally being told what had gone wrong.
According to the complaint, Kaiser administrators met with Barksdale on Sept. 23, 2025, and informed her that DNA testing established the biopsy showing aggressive cancer was not hers and instead “belongs to a different patient.”
She later received a revised laboratory report instructing her to disregard the original pathology results because the specimen likewise “belongs to a different patient,” the complaint says.
“As a result of the abject negligence of the Defendants, Ms. Barksdale has sustained serious, permanent and irreversible injuries to her person, including but not limited to, surgical menopause, permanent and premature anatomical and physiological changes, severe mental pain, emotional distress, post-traumatic stress, anxiety and depression, fear of future medical treatment, medical distrust, loss of bodily integrity and autonomy, embarrassment, humiliation, and diminished quality and enjoyment of life,” the complaint states.
The defendants are also accused of negligently failing to maintain proper chain of custody of Barksdale’s test materials, incorrectly labeling another patient’s tissue as Barksdale’s, and failing to follow laboratory protocols designed to prevent specimen misidentification.
During a news conference announcing the lawsuit, Barksdale said the diagnosis devastated her and her family.
“I had to contact my kids to let them know that I have five years to live and that I’m going to die because I have aggressive cancer,” she told Atlanta NBC affiliate WXIA. “My sons went into a deep depression. It took a big hold over my family.”
She also said she struggled with severe depression and suicidal thoughts after believing she was dying.
Her attorney, Roderick Edmond, said the litigation is intended to determine how such an error could have happened.
“We’ve got computers, we’ve got science, we’ve got AI, how the h— did this happen?” Edmond said.
Edmond also said discovery could reveal whether another patient may have been affected by the alleged specimen mix-up.
Kaiser acknowledged the mistake in a statement provided to multiple news outlets.
“Our most important responsibility is to safely, expertly and compassionately care for the people who entrust us with their health. If we make a mistake, it can have profound effects,” the company said. “Ms. Barksdale should not have experienced this.”
Barksdale is seeking unspecified damages, a jury trial, attorney’s fees and other relief. The allegations in the lawsuit have not yet been tested in court.
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