February 28, 2020
Gareth Lewis, BBC Wales News
“I wish I hadn’t had the surgery in Türkiye”
A woman in Turkey who was left with scars from cosmetic surgery has decided to undergo reconstructive surgery.
Kimberley Sadd, 27, from Ogmore Vale, Bridgend, had two operations in 2019 costing £6,000, and warns of the dangers of cheaper options overseas.
Dean Boyce, a surgeon at Morriston Hospital in Swansea, said patients should look at the “big picture”.
BBC Wales has contacted Comfort Zone, the company that carried out Saad’s surgery, but has not received a response.
Ms Thad, who once weighed nearly 23 stone (146kg), told BBC Radio Wales’ Gareth Lewis programme that she had lost nine stone with a gastric band but was left with excess skin so decided to have breast augmentation and tummy tuck surgery.
She flew to Turkey in March 2019 because it was “a fraction of the price” of similar procedures offered in the UK and she was impressed by Comfort Zone’s website.
However, the experience did not live up to expectations.
“The hospital was a small old building in a back alley,” she said.
“I only met the surgeon the morning of the operation. They marked me up and put me on the lift but didn’t even weigh me before the anesthesia.”
Kimberly Sadd
Kimberly Sadd had surgery because she had excess skin left over after losing weight
She said that during the first surgery, excess skin wasn’t removed, causing one of her breast implants to “hang down.”
Thad said Comfort Zone recommended a repeat surgery, but the wound didn’t heal properly and remained infected.
She also had concerns about the hygiene of the patient villa where she stayed after her surgery.
Kimberly Sadd
Even after undergoing two surgeries, Thad was left with an infection.
“Nurses never wore aprons when changing bandages,” she said.
“And the (surgical) drains were just flushed down the toilet. The post-op care was awful.”
“I have ongoing problems, there are little puss coming out of the wound and the scar is getting bigger and bigger.
“Since returning to the UK I’ve been to the emergency department of NHS hospitals three times and have had to be given antibiotics via IV in my arm.”
Ms Thad has had £10,000 worth of privately funded reconstructive surgery but is concerned about how much the NHS is footing the bill to correct procedures carried out overseas – figures not collated by the Welsh NHS or the two Royal Colleges of Physicians which represent plastic surgeons.
Kimberly Sadd
Before his surgery, Thad weighed nearly 23 stone (146kg).
Dean Boyce, of the British Association of Plastic and Cosmetic Surgeons, said: “It’s not like buying a new outfit – surgery carries risks. Think about what you’d do if something went wrong. If you use your local hospital you’ll have a local surgeon to help you.”
“The reason most people go abroad is because of the cost. It’s cheaper in some countries, but you have to look at the bigger picture. Your body is going through this, so you need to get the best and safest treatment you can.”
BBC Wales has tried to contact Comfort Zone multiple times but has not yet received a response.
