DuVall, who was diagnosed with the illness last year, and even sued the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center over a deadly, mold-linked infection, passed away on Saturday at UPMC Presbyterian.
The University of Pittsburgh Medical Center is now under siege as DuVall is the fourth patient to die after getting a fungal infection while being treated in UPMC´s renowned organ transplant program.
“It is with great sadness that we confirm the passing of Mr. DuVall, and we extend our deepest sympathies to his family, as well as to our doctors and nurses who have worked with great compassion and skill to care for him,¨said UPMC spokesperson Allison Hydzik. ¨We again want to reassure our patients that we have taken every possible precaution to make our hospitals as safe as is humanly possible and have followed all recommendations made by federal and state regulators.¨
DuVall, a Vietnam War veteran and father of three, underwent a double lung transplant for the chronic obstructive pulmonary disease at the UPMC Presbyterian.
However, in the course of its treatment, he contracted a fungal infection in the hospital´s cardiothoracic intensive care unit and could never recover. Even when doctors diagnosed the infection as far as September, DuVall´s chances of survival were scarce.
Che DuVall, alongside his wife Karen, had filed a lawsuit in Allegheny County early on January against the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center Presbyterian. Having a solid case, according to DuVall´s wife Karen, by stating that the facilities were not up to a hospital´s standards. It was also mentioned how the fact he was put in a negative pressure room caused DuVall to develop the fungal infection.
A report by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said that four patients at the hospital contracted the rare infection which was caused by a group of molds. According to this report made in December 2015 alleged that three patients had died by the time it was released. The report also added that “all infections were suspected to be healthcare-associated.¨
The University of Pittsburgh Medical Center has maintained the case disproving the link between the deaths attributed to mold and transplant patients with weakened immune systems. So far, the UPMC has not commented on DuVall´s lawsuit.