Jury awards man $870K after doctor removed the wrong testicle

HUNTINGDON COUNTY, Pennsylvania -- A jury in Pennsylvania has awarded $870,000 to a man after a 2013 incident in which a doctor removed the wrong testicle during surgery.

According to WPMT, 54-year-old Steven Hanes had surgery to remove his chronically painful right testicle after suffering severe pain for years. Medical imaging and records showed the testicle was about half the size of its counterpart.

After surgery, it was discovered that his healthy left testicle had been removed.

The award is split into $620,000 in compensatory and $250,000 in punitive damages.

The additional punitive damages were handed down because the jury found that Dr. Valley Spencer Long, who performed the surgery, was "recklessly indifferent" in his treatment of the patient.

The verdict was the first medical malpractice verdict in Pennsylvania, west of Harrisburg in at least 25 years.