7 days ago
I flew to Belgium for my dream boob job - what happened next was the stuff of nightmares, my surgeon had never seen anything like it
A This Morning guest has opened up about her terrifying ordeal following a breast enhancement that left her with swollen joints and impaired vision.
Charlotte Reddington Smith appeared on the ITV daytime chat show to discuss the horrifying after effects of getting her dream boob job.
The interior designer told hosts Andi Peters and Emma Willis that she made the decision to get the procedure after giving birth to her son at the age of 24.
'I'd always been curvy growing up and my body had changed a lot since having my first son,' said Charlotte.
The mother explained she had several friends who had flown out to Belgium to get boob jobs, adding: 'I just followed, I just went "Do you know what, I think this is what I want to do."
'I just looked at all the positives and not any of the negatives.'
Charlotte had had the implants for six years when she started noticing her health declining.
She experienced swollen joints and her eyesight started going blurry in one eye - but no medical expert could identify the source of the issue.
Once engaged to marry, Charlotte then had a second pair of implants put in, opting to go down a size.
'That's when I really noticed my health just went massively downhill,' she said.
Given Charlotte's desired outcome, she said the surgeon should have advised her to have an 'uplift' - lifting the breasts higher up rather than enlarging them with implants.
Eventually, Charlotte's mum connected the dots and questioned whether the implants were causing symptoms.
'I laughed,' said Charlotte, adding: 'How could implants have anything to do with how my body's reacting?
'I was having MRI scans, weekly eye tests, they were testing me for rheumatoid arthritis, then they were saying it was early onset menopause, but I was only 27 or 28.'
Charlotte did some research and found she had Breast Implant Illness, known as BII.
She joined a Facebook group of other women who had been experiencing severe health symptoms, then explanting and feeling subsequently 'so much better.'
Charlotte discovered her implants had been recalled by the manufacturer - meaning they had been deemed unsafe, but she had not been alerted by her surgeon.
Via the group, she realised the recalled implants were causing 'rare breast cancers in women' owing to the material which flaked off and spread around the body.
Dr Zoe Williams appeared on the programme, and explained that BII is not currently recognised as an official disease - but studies do support the fact that many women get ill from implants.
Some NHS sites that offer breast augmentation, however, do list BII as a potential side effect.
'There are two types of implants recalled in the UK,' Dr Zoe said. 'The one that Charlotte has is made by a brand called Allergan, it's a Biocell implant and yes it has been linked to a very rare cancer.
'The implants will not be used on anyone else, but they weren't recalled out of people's bodies unless they were having symptoms because the risk of this cancer is extremely rare.'
Dr Zoe said that rupturing is rare, and a silent rupture is where there's no obvious sign that it has taken place, but it can happen.
She advised that a monthly breast check is the best way to protect yourself if you've had implants.
'I was so tired of feeling so unwell and not being the best mum to the boys,' said Charlotte.
'I'm so happy I had them out, the surgeon even said, "Well done you for listening to your body and your intuition because I've not seen a rupture like this in a long time."
Charlotte's implants had burst, with no external indication that anything had gone wrong.
'The silicone was then floating around my body,' she said. 'I've had scans since and I have a lot of silicone now in my lymph nodes because my body's trying to protect itself from the silicone leakage.'
'You live and learn,' said Charlotte. 'Hindsight is a wonderful thing.'
