--- title: "E. coli outbreak: Salem woman wasn’t expected to live" date: 2006-09-15T16:49:12-07:00 author: Bill Marler canonical_url: "https://marlerclark.com/news_events/e-coli-outbreak-salem-woman-wasnt-expected-to-live" section: News --- [All News](/news_events) / [Outbreaks](https://marlerclark.com/news_events/outbreaks) / # E. coli outbreak: Salem woman wasn’t expected to live ![](http://www.ecoliblog.com/gwen_wellborn.jpg) Gwyn Wellborn of Salem is recovering from a brush with death from [E. coli](http://www.about-ecoli.com/) poisoning that was traced to a bag of Dole baby spinach she bought Aug. 21 at WinCo Foods. The 27-year-old wife and mother developed a rare complication called [hemolytic uremic syndrome](http://www.about-hus.com/), a disease that affects the kidneys and the blood-clotting system. Doctors at Salem Hospital didn’t expect her to survive, but several blood transfusions and plasma exchanges later, Wellborn pulled through. About the same time the U.S. Food and Drug Administration warned consumers about a nationwide outbreak of E. coli O157:H7 stemming from bagged fresh spinach, the law firm Marler Clark filed a personal-injury action suit against Dole Food Co. on behalf of the Wellborns. The Seattle firm has represented thousands of victims of food poisoning, including some of the people sickened a year ago in a similar outbreak traced to bags of Dole lettuce, attorney Bill Marler said. Marler told the Statesman Journal he has tried and settled $250 million in E. coli poisoning cases during the past 13 years. The Wellborns are suing Dole for damages including general pain and suffering and medical-related expenses. 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The team at Marler Clark is here to answer all your questions. Find out if you’re eligible for a lawsuit, what questions to ask your doctor, and more. [ Get a free consultation ](https://marlerclark.com/contact) ##### Related Resources ###### [E. coli Food Poisoning](https://marlerclark.com/foodborne-illnesses/e-coli/e-coli-food-poisoning) What is E. coli and how does it cause food poisoning? Escherichia coli (E. coli) is a highly studied, common species of bacteria that belongs to the family Enterobacteriaceae, so... ###### [E. coli O157:H7](https://marlerclark.com/foodborne-illnesses/e-coli/e-coli-o157h7) E. coli O157:H7 is a foodborne pathogen that causes food poisoning. E. coli O157:H7 is the most commonly identified and the most notorious Shiga toxin-producing E. coli (STEC) serotype in... ###### [Non-O157 STEC](https://marlerclark.com/foodborne-illnesses/e-coli/non-o157-stec) Non-O157 Shiga Toxin-Producing E. coli can also cause food poisoning. 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[ View Outbreak Database ](https://outbreakdatabase.com)