Daily Mirror (Northern Ireland)
Top cosmetic surgeon’s warning to patients
BRITAIN’S top plastic surgeon has warned against having cosmetic surgery abroad after a Mirror probe revealed an unfolding tragedy.
Simon Withey, President of British Association of Aesthetic Plastic Surgeons, spoke out after we told how it has cost the NHS £30million over five years to fix botched ops done abroad.
Meanwhile, more women have come forward to claim horrifying experiences at the hands of Turkish surgeon Dr Mehmet Kaya.
Mr Withey said: “Having surgery abroad can have its benefits but there are huge risks involved.
“Patients should be having follow-ups at different intervals and surgery abroad makes this almost impossible unless you are returning at great expense.
“Also often patients won’t know what to do if anything goes wrong. How do you know if someone has the correct insurance? How do you get a lawyer abroad?
“And when things do go wrong, often the patients feel guilty and they stay silent, often embarrassed at the decisions they have
made.” Mr Withey also revealed a huge shift in attitudes to cosmetic surgery, with over-50s now the largest group to consider going under the knife.
He added: “There are some good reasons for health tourism if you find a surgeon who does a procedure no one else does and, of course, there are excellent surgeons all over the world.
“But if you are looking around the world for the cheapest deal what you end up with is people who struggle to get patients in their own country and therefore prey on the vulnerabilities of others.
“We have been struggling to get out the message of the dangers out there and I applaud the Daily Mirror for its approach in this investigation.”
Currently more than 1,000 women a year have cheap foreign ops fixed at home.