The routine surgical procedure Joan Rivers was supposed to undergo turned deadly when a doctor, who arrived at the clinic with the comedienne's entourage, reportedly performed an unplanned biopsy on her vocal cords.
Rivers apparently stopped breathing following the surprise biopsy on her vocal cords which affected her air supply, reported New York Daily News.
Back then, a doctor reportedly asked if he could use their instrument after the clinic's doctor noticed "something" on Rivers' vocal cords. The biopsy caused her vocal cords to seize, a condition which is called laryngospasm.
According to the source, the biopsy was not supposed to be performed outside hospital.
"A biopsy like that should only be done in a hospital setting," the source claimed.
"If she had been in a hospital when it happened, she might have been okay."
The source additionally said that Rivers only signed off on an endoscopy.
Rivers, 81, was rushed to Mount Sinai Hospital following the cardiac arrest and she passed away on Thursday, September 4. A star-studded funeral service was conducted on Sunday at Temple Emanu-El on the Upper East Side.
