Skip to main content
Skip to main content

Hot on HuffPost Food:

See More Stories
Tell us what you think for a chance at $1000!


Wendy's Utensil Found Stuck in Man's Lung

wendy's utensil
Photo: Duke Medicine News.
For more than two years John Manley had trouble breathing.

The Wilmington, N.C., man was constantly under the weather, prone to pneumonia and shortness of breath, and doctors didn't know why. His wife, thinking he was depressed, even bought two dogs to try and cheer him up and get him out of the house.

But last week, doctors at Duke University Medical Center finally unraveled the mystery of Manley's chronic health woes: a piece of a Wendy's plastic utensil had been lodged in his lung.


It took two years of treatment, including one 11-day hospital stay, and Manley insisting something was in his lung before his doctors looked at him with a camera. "That's whey they found the item," Manley told Slashfood. "They didn't know what it was. All they knew was that it had some kind of writing on it."

"We figured out ... it was saying hamburger," Dr. Momen Wahidi, director of interventional pulmonology, told the Charlotte Observer. "But why would something that says hamburger be in this patient's body?"

Manley said he had no idea how or when the plastic got into his lung, but thinks he may have ingested in with a drink as he's "a gulper."

The discovery also took Wendy's by surprise.

"This is the first we've heard of it, and we're baffled just like everyone else as to how something like that could happen." said Wendy's spokesman Denny Lynch. "I've been with the company for 29 years and I've never heard of anything like this happening. This is a first for me, that somebody somehow inhaled a piece of a spoon and that the poor man walked around with it for ... two years? That's a shame that he's been in discomfort for so long."

Manley still needs follow-up care, he said, to make sure that there are no lingering pieces of the plastic utensil in his lung and to clean up the scar tissue that remains. But he's feeling much better now.

"I can breathe. I couldn't breathe before. I was constantly sick. I was pretty much house ridden for two years. That was not fun. I'm a very active person, and I was not happy sitting in the house," he said.

As for his relationship with his one-time go-to fast food joint, Wendy's, Manley said he's not in any rush to return.

"I'm not a fast-food junkie, but when I do go, I do go to Wendy's," he said. "I don't think I'll be running out to any fast-food joints any time soon."

[Via Charlotte Observer]

Have you ever found something in your fast food?
Yes1318 (56.6%)
No1011 (43.4%)

Filed Under: Health & Medical, Food News, Fast Food
Tags: Duke University, DukeUniversity, John Manley, JohnManley, Lung, Plastic Utensil, PlasticUtensil, Wendys

Sponsored Links

Reader comments (Page 1 of 2)

pam

9-18-2009 @8:29PM pam said... I think I would consider suing someone, that much pain, and the statitories are still within the limits , they'd be paying the bill after all they have the prooooooof!
Reply

Paula

9-18-2009 @8:41PM Paula said... The only "proof" they have is that this guy eats too fast. He inhaled the spoon, for heaven's sake! That isn't Wendy's fault!
Reply

dickn2000b

9-18-2009 @8:46PM dickn2000b said... What uneducated amateur does the proofreading at Slashfood? And what blind editor allows these poorly written pieces to be posted. Below is an example of how bad the slashfood "journalists are. CCheck ito ut in the story.
"That's whey they found the item," Manley told Slashfood. "

That's whey? Don't you mean That's when?


Reply

Evey

9-18-2009 @9:23PM Evey said... Don't blame the man - how could eating too fast cause him to inhale part of his spoon? That's just silly. The part inhaled was broken off of the end of his spoon. That part is very thick, and would not just break off into his food while he was eating. This was obviously an accident on the part of the staff, and it should be dismissed as a freak occurrence.
Reply

john

9-18-2009 @9:22PM john said... Pam, are you retarded, lawsuits like that are what brings this country down, its his own fault and how do you know he wasnt at a picnic and someone just had plastic silverware from wendys, enough said.
Reply

pd39

9-18-2009 @9:32PM pd39 said... Gulper or not, how the hell did it end up in his lung? I would thing that the amount of liquid needed to consume it in the first place would have filled his lungs and drown him.
Reply

bob

9-18-2009 @9:53PM bob said... i worked for wendy's for 16 years and this was not any fault of wendy's to think so is just crazy
Reply

cathy rohrscheib

9-19-2009 @8:29AM cathy rohrscheib said... if this man inhaled this his nose must be cavern
Reply

Your Friend Ben

9-18-2009 @10:16PM Your Friend Ben said... I believe that John Manley knew what was in his lungs and when it got there. He was too embarrassed to tell any body "HEY! I just sucked a piece of plastic spoon down my windpipe. Isn't that funny?". Being a "Gulper" has nothing to do with your lungs. It would have gone to his esophagus or bowels. He also had been insisting to the doctors that something was in his lungs. His pride, ego or just stupidity almost killed him.
............DUH....Your friend Ben
Reply

Denise

9-18-2009 @10:12PM Denise said... I don't blame Wendy's at all. I say the doctors dropped the ball on this one. If this man was so sick for two years that he was virtually homeridden it should not have taken this long to diagnose him. I'm a nurse and I have seen my share of incompetence by doctors out there. And I'm not talking about the residents, it's the "been there for a while" doctors too.
Reply

pinky

9-18-2009 @10:22PM pinky said... As a Wendy's Staff member a ahve to disagree that it would be the staffs fault not because I work for the company but if you have ever been to a Wendy's you would know that all the plasticware is individually wrapped and not used by the staff for anything only by customers
Reply

ashleigh

9-18-2009 @10:22PM ashleigh said... What I don't get is how it ended up in his lung... If he gulped it down, or if it was in his burger and he wolfed his food down, wouldn't it all end up in his gut, & not his lung? If something goes down the wind pipe accidentally, even just a drop of water, people usually hack and cough for ages! And if it's very much more than a drop of water, people usually need the heimlich maneuver performed to dislodge the bit of stuff that is stuck... If not, they usually die!! This guy is a walking miracle that something could go down his windpipe that didn't get stuck and didn't choke him to death!!
Reply

Yaya

9-18-2009 @11:21PM Yaya said... Good Lord! He swallowed the spoon.............. I'm still thinking as to how this could of happened WITHOUT HIM NOTICING a PLASTIC SPOON ENTERING HIS THROAT!I can't imagine how his large intestine looks like if he eats the way he does without noticing a foreign object without much thought.....Jeez, I want to laugh- but I'm just not sure! Bazaar!
Reply

MurphysLaw1300

9-18-2009 @11:25PM MurphysLaw1300 said... not in our state "PINKY"...its not wrapped! its in stainless steel type bins/tubes. just like anyother fast food joint. well...KFC i must say has their utensils wrapped unlike the rest including yes! your beloved wendys!
Reply

Tim

9-18-2009 @11:25PM Tim said... This is what happens when you inhale your food.
Reply

Sharyn

9-18-2009 @11:24PM Sharyn said... This is a case of literally inhaling his food or his Frosty. Either way...SLOW DOWN! CHEW YOUR FOOD, you savage! Sheesh! Lucky that thing didn't puncture his lung.
Reply

Debbi M.

9-18-2009 @11:30PM Debbi M. said... For People like "bob" Whom CLAIM to FAME that they work for Wendys? Hmm? Just how much did the head of wendys food chain pay you to go online and AOL no less to say that? it most certainly IS Wendys fault in every aspect! If this poor man was out to sue wendys he certainly wouldn't have waited 2 damn years to do so and in excruciating pain and depression and to not leave his house? he could EASILY have done that in less time,less pain,not even having depression, and not being house bound and so on! further more how did he know that it would have landed in his lung? and to suffer unbelievabley on having a hard time breathing and in major pain with every breath he took you think that was some kind of planned picnic for a law suit? give us all a break please! wendys is fully at fault for this and he could have died and after living like this for 2 years and finally (like ALL married MEN!lol) after his wife's persistance and incistance he went to the doctors (no less to shut up his wife like ALL MARRIED MEN WITH THEIR WIVES!lol)and found out what it was and had it removed and if you think that is the end of story? it maybe and might not be so! his system got so use to working 3 times as harder than normal, now who's to say after all is said and done that he may not drop dead now that it has been removed and he feels a lot better compared to before it was removed? its not unheard of. that and he has alot of scar tissue and so on medically as a result of wendys and his doctors from prior visits he had, when those doctors like typical doctors these days just dismissed him and his concerns and symptoms and red flag warning signs of something gravely being wrong with him! when all it took was afew xrays and a scope type camera down into his chest/lungs to clearly see what was there all along! i say that clearly this man has every right and should excerise his rights to not only sue the living crap outta wendys but also the negligent doctors that dismissed him like he was some crazy nobody!!! and with some of these comments in the article i can already see wendys back peddling their sorry asses cause they know he can and just may sue wendys & win BIG TIME!!!! as for being a big "gulper"? and how could he not know? i bet he had ice cubes in his drink & just assumed it was just that...an, ICE CUBE! some of which can & have been known to be sharp ice cubes in alot of these fast food joints as i'm SURE you all have experienced yourselves on occasion! and as for you "John" how DARE YOU call Pam "RETARDED"??? i wonder just how many mentally challenged people and family members you have offended by that one disgustingly inappropriote word in that statement you made to Pam,that is for ALL to see & read!! and get your facts straight john before making obserd comments! lawsuits are NOT whats bringing down this country! when it comes to lawsuits usually there is a "cap" on just how much is the most one can sue for, however in this particular case? the sky is the limit i'm betting. his and i mean ALL of his past,current & any and all future medical bills,doctors,treatments,surgeries,medicines,and more all the way down to his pain & suffering which by the way his wife and anyother helpful family members and friends, coworkers,loss of job & wages if he was working at the time all will factor in! this also includes the permanent scar tissue he has as well and any other scars from operations too! in closing, if you are reading this mr or mrs john manley? i wish you the best of luck, a speedy full recovery & i pray you do sue the living day lights out of prior doctors whom did nothing & of course wendys also!! why should you both be left to carry the burden & fall broke & lose everything because of incompetent fast food workers at that wendys you went to? you shouldn't! i wouldn't be surprised if it was done on purpose at your expense by a disgruntled worker or some worker who thought to get their kicks & a good laugh at once! not unheard of! good luck to you both & take care. :0)
Reply

Debbi M.

9-18-2009 @11:36PM Debbi M. said... Sorry Everyone,AOL put my longer post in here twice in a row.lol! that's AOL for you. have a great weekend. :0)
Reply

Lisa

9-18-2009 @11:59PM Lisa said... It's way better then fast food, it's Wendy's
Reply

yodiebabie1690

9-19-2009 @12:32AM yodiebabie1690 said... I can't believe anyone would actually have even the most miniscule belief that this man could sue wendy's for anything. If some moron shoves a Lightbulb up his rectum and it breaks, should he sue G.E.? I mean seriously, he HAD to have known it was in there. I mean, Come on! The handles on those spoons are what? like 2 inches long? If you're eating and you don't feel a 2 inch long piece of plastic, maybe you should re-train yourself to eat properly! It is so mind-boggling to think that people would sue over one's own poor actions and stupidity. Anything for a dollar! Anything to take the blame off of yourself and put it on someone else. Incredible!
Reply

26 Comments / 2 Pages

Most Popular Stories

  • FDA Still Struggling to Define

    FDA Still Struggling to Define "Gluten-Free"Read More

  • This Omelet Recipe Is Written On the Egg Itself

    This Omelet Recipe Is Written On the Egg ItselfRead More

  • Why Jewish Food Disappoints

    Why Jewish Food DisappointsRead More

Latest Flickr Feed


Sponsored Links