Seven British patients who travelled to Turkey for weight loss surgery died after operations there, a BBC investigation into the trend has found.
Others have returned home with serious health issues after having had gastric sleeve operations, during which more than 70% of the stomach is removed.
The operations, used to treat morbid obesity, are carried out in the UK.
But, because it can take years to get one through the NHS, some people are looking abroad for treatment.
Social media advertising has helped fuel interest in travelling overseas for weight loss surgery in recent years.
Katie (not her real name) from Belfast first considered travelling to Turkey after seeing an advert online.
Like many others, she had watched “before and after” weight loss videos on social media – the TikTok hashtag #gastric sleeve has had 292 million views in the UK in the past three years.
Katie flew out for surgery in October 2021. Soon after the procedure, she says she was in agony, but the Turkish clinic told her it was just trapped gas.
After flying home and “squealing” in pain, she was rushed to hospital with sepsis and pneumonia days later.
Katie spent almost a year in and out of hospital, contracting sepsis on six separate occasions. NHS doctors were forced to remove her entire stomach.
She says the procedure has left her constantly tired and unable to continue in her job as a support worker for the elderly.
“It’s the worst mistake I’ve ever made,” she says. “It’s ruined my life.”
Katie says her treatment and care were “nothing like” the promotional material she saw online.
Source: BBC
