Fresno attorney has a surprise thank you for hospital staff who performed 9-hour surgery

Prominent Fresno defense attorney Tony Capozzi surprised Community Regional Medical Center staff, who he credits with saving his life, with recognition awards through the hospital’s Honor Your Care Hero program on Tuesday.

Capozzi recently had treatment for a rare, life-threatening condition called arteriovenous malformation, a blood vessel abnormality, in his case involving his colon. Capozzi was in surgery for nine hours then spent 11 days in recovery.

During a routine screening, his doctors discovered the condition and referred him to Stanford for additional evaluation. The doctors at Stanford had never seen this unusual situation before, and he was sent back to Community Regional, where doctors led by colon and rectal surgeon Dr. John Gary performed the surgery.

Arteriovenous malformation is an abnormal tangle of blood vessels connecting arteries and veins which disrupts normal blood flow and oxygen circulation, and in Capozzi’s case, involved the vessels providing blood to his colon. Gary said the condition is thought to be congenital.