Latest news with #SaveFace
The Independent
11 hours ago
- Health
- The Independent
Crackdown urged as unsafe cosmetic fillers sold online for £20
The Chartered Trading Standards Institute (CTSI) has warned about a surge in unsafe cosmetic procedures, such as fat injections and fillers, being administered by untrained individuals in unregulated locations like public restrooms. CTSI is calling for immediate government intervention to regulate unlicensed practitioners and treatments, saying unsafe fillers are available online for as little as £20. The institute has uncovered practices, including administering fillers in pop-up shops, public toilet cubicles, and hotel rooms, which pose enforcement challenges. Kerry Nicol of the CTSI is urging a national licensing scheme to ensure qualified practitioners and coordinated multi-agency action. Ashton Collins, director at Save Face, is campaigning for the government to ban liquid Brazilian butt lifts (BBLs) from the high street and restrict their administration to qualified plastic surgeons following the death of Alice Webb after undergoing a liquid BBL procedure in 2024.
Daily Mirror
21-05-2025
- Health
- Daily Mirror
Horrified women 'waking up with no bums' after grim BBLs in back of car
Ashton Collins, director of Save Face, a register of accredited practitioners for cosmetic surgery, has revealed hundreds of women have been given cosmetic surgery in a 'dingy gym, in an Airbnb, or in a car" Botched "disaster" cosmetic surgeries are being "carried out in the back of cars" across the high streets with "illegal syringes from China" leading to women "waking up with no bottom", an expert has warned. Hundreds of women across the UK are signing up for liquid Brazilian butt lifts, also known as BBLS, and liquid breast enlargements as the cosmetic industry target patients with cut-price deals on social media. However, many of the procedures are being carried out in the back of a "dingy gym, in an Airbnb or in an office space." One person was even "treated in the back of a car", according to Ashton Collins, director of Save Face, a register of accredited practitioners for cosmetic surgery. Ms Collins recently addressed MPs at a select women and equalities committee to demand law is passed that BBLS are only carried out by qualified surgeons - and not people posing on social media as health professionals. In December 2023, Save Face launched a campaign calling upon the government to ban high-risk liquid BBL procedures. They warned that these procedures are a crisis waiting to happen. She told The Mirror: "I know dozens and dozens of people have been treated in the back of a dingy gym, in a Airbnb or in an office space. I know one person was treated in the back of a car. These stories are not isolated to one or two individuals, these are the accounts of the vast majority of people that report liquid complaints to us. They are nearly all carried out in all manner of unsuitable places. "It's very unsafe. You need to be in a sterile especially given the type of procedure that's being carried especially if it's a BBL. They are surgical procedures that carry a great deal of risk and these procedures are being carried out by people with no healthcare experience in unsuitable rooms like hotel rooms and Airbnb's. It is an absolute recipe for disaster." According to Save Face, nearly 600 individuals have suffered devastating complications from procedures falsely advertised as being risk-free. All of these cases were performed by practitioners lacking any healthcare experience, operating in unsuitable and unsterile environments, often using unlicensed products, according to SaveFace. Alarmingly, more than 52% of individuals we assisted have contracted sepsis, and over 39% required corrective surgery - many were told at the hospital that they might not survive. Ms Collins said: "People who have not done a day of medical training are more than happy to pick up a syringe of a product that they bought from China or Hong Kong that's been illegally imported and inject thousands of millilitres into the buttocks and breasts of unsuspecting women. It's assault. "They just either ignore the person or tell them Oh, it's just a bit of bruising in a bit of swelling. Don't worry about it. You know it'll be gone within a couple of days, and obviously, in that time it progresses, and then they end up in septic shock in the hospital. We've had families being called in to say goodbye; they've been told they might not make it through the night. "They've been told that they might wake up without their legs because the abscesses are so bad; we've had tissue necrosis where the tissues died along the buttocks, and those tissues need to be surgically removed. We've had women end up with no butts at all because they've had to have them removed." SaveFace set up Alice's Law after the tragic death of 33-year-old mum Alice Webb, who tragically lost her life following a liquid BBL procedure. Alice's family endorsed the campaign for new legislation in her memory. They said: 'Alice's death has left a huge void in our family, one that can never be filled. We are devastated by the overwhelming feeling of grief, loss, and anger because her death should never have been allowed to happen. All we can do now is hope for justice. We are supporting Save Face's campaign to implement a new law in Alice's name to ensure that those responsible for her death are held accountable and to prevent any other family from having to endure this awful suffering."
Daily Mail
19-05-2025
- Health
- Daily Mail
Cosmetic surgery 'being done in living rooms' - NHS forced to fix botched ops by cowboy operators, experts warn
Complications from plastic surgery has become a 'burden' on the NHS -as medical staff are forced to fix the results of disaster cosmetic operations performed by unqualified practitioners abroad. Botched Brazilian butt lifts (BBLs) are being carried out in people's living rooms, in Airbnbs and in hotel rooms and leading to catastrophic health issues, MPs have heard. In a hearing at the House of Commons hosted by the Women and Equalities committee, a collection of experts including nurses, campaigners and doctors shared evidence of the dangers of cosmetic tourism and how it could cripple the NHS. Ashton Collins, director of Save Face, a register of accredited practitioners for cosmetic surgery, told the committee on Wednesday there was a 'crisis waiting to happen' because of 'grey areas' in regulation. Leading nurses also warned that cosmetic operations abroad are being sold as 'holiday packages', and have called for companies providing them to cover the NHS costs should they need to intervene as a result of negative side effects. Meanwhile, Professor Vivien Lees, consultant plastic surgeon and vice president at the Royal College of Surgeons, said the current regulations surrounding such procedures are 'insufficient'. 'We regularly see people both from this country and overseas who've got acute problems that cannot be sorted out by the people who did the treatments. 'I've seen infected buttock implants coming out, abscesses, bleeding problems in the middle of the night from clinics, actually medical clinics here, that don't have the ability to treat their own complications. 'So that lands up with the NHS and it's turning into a significant burden of work, particularly for the plastic surgeons, also for the breast surgeons.' She added the number of problems resulting from these procedures will only ramp up as the global cosmetic surgery three fold over the next decade. It follows a growing trend of people travelling overseas for weight-loss surgery, dental care and cosmetic procedures, with Turkey being a hotspot known for slashed prices. 'These are surgical procedures that should not be being carried out on the high street they are being carried out in people's living rooms, in Airbnbs, in hotel rooms, by people who are using products that they're buying unlicensed from places like China and Korea,' said Ms Collins. 'They are decanting them from huge vats into individual syringes and inject thousands of millilitres into people's breasts and buttocks. 'And then when things go wrong, they are misdiagnosing these problems and telling them there's nothing to worry about, and luckily, all of these women have taken themselves off to hospital, because if they hadn't, there would have been countless deaths in the UK because of this, and it shouldn't be allowed to happen.' She added social media has also become rampant with 'unscrupulous' practitioners who use the platform to promote the invasive operations. Ms Collins has called for legislation to ensure that BBLs are only performed by qualified surgeons, which would be named Alice's Law—after a young woman who died after a Brazilian butt lift. A BBL uses liposuction to remove fat from one part of the body like abdomen, hips or thighs and then inject it into the bottom to make it bigger, more rounded and lifted. But the surgery is so risky that the British Association of Aesthetic Plastic Surgeons has advised its members not to perform it. It's known as a 'blind' procedure, and surgeons can inadvertently injure the large vessels in the muscle or even inject fat directly into those vessels if the tube goes too deep. The injected fat can travel and cause a blockage in a blood vessel in the lungs, known medically as a pulmonary embolism, which can be fatal. Alice Webb, 33, was a mother of five was the first person to die from a BBL procedure in the UK. She lost her life in September 2025 just hours after having the surgery, which is believed to have been performed in Gloucestershire. BBL surgery has the highest death rate of all cosmetic procedures across the globe. Twenty-five fatalities were confirmed in the United States over the last five years, according to the National Library of Medicine. The number of people needing hospital treatment in the UK after getting cosmetic surgery abroad increased by 94 per cent in three years, say the BBPS. While the study also found 50 per cent of patients regretted their decision to have the operation overseas. Since 2019, 28 Britons have died after undergoing cosmetic surgery in Turkey, with six fatalities in the country due to medical tourism in 2023 alone, figures from the Foreign Office revealed. She was treated at a UK clinic run by a glamorous beautician and a TV star dubbed the 'Lip King'. It is run by beautician Jemma Pawlyszyn and Jordan James Parke. Mr Parke, who describes himself on social media as 'The Plastic Surgery Advocate', is not a qualified surgeon and provides treatment from the clinic.
North Wales Chronicle
15-05-2025
- Health
- North Wales Chronicle
Cosmetic surgery being conducted in ‘living rooms and Airbnbs', MPs hear
Ashton Collins, director of Save Face, a register of accredited practitioners for cosmetic surgery, told the Women and Equalities Committee there is a 'crisis waiting to happen' because of 'grey areas' in regulation. She called for legislation to ensure that such BBLs are conducted only by qualified surgeons – also known as Alice's Law, named after a young mother who died after a BBL. It comes as leading nurses raised concerns that surgical procedures abroad are too easily being sold as 'holiday packages', as they called for companies providing the operations to foot the NHS bill when things go wrong. On Wednesday we will hold an evidence session looking into the health impacts of breast implants and other cosmetic procedures. It will touch on the PIP scandal, rise in cosmetic procedures, liquid boob jobs/BBLs and cosmetic tourism. 🕜 2.20pm🗓️ Wednesday 14th May [1/3] — Women & Equalities Committee (@CommonsWEC) May 12, 2025 So-called surgical tourism could also be driving a potentially deadly resistance to antibiotics, the Royal College of Nursing's annual congress in Liverpool heard. In Westminster, the committee also heard from a woman who nearly died after getting a BBL. Sasha Dean gave tearful testimony describing how she was admitted to intensive care with sepsis and kept in hospital for five weeks. 'The impact is profound,' she said as she told MPs how she was 'lulled into a sense of security' and she was 'misinformed'. 'These are being carried out by any anybody, they don't need any qualifications,' she told MPs. Ms Collins said: 'These are surgical procedures that should not be being carried out on the high street – they are being carried out in people's living rooms, in Airbnbs, in hotel rooms, by people who are using products that they're buying unlicensed from places like China and Korea. 'They are decanting them from huge vats into individual syringes and inject thousands of millilitres into people's breasts and buttocks. 'And then when things go wrong, they are misdiagnosing these problems and telling them there's nothing to worry about, and luckily, all of these women have taken themselves off to hospital, because if they hadn't, there would have been countless deaths in the UK because of this, and it shouldn't be allowed to happen.' And Ms Collins said social media is a 'hotbed for unscrupulous practitioners' promoting cosmetic surgery, with young people 'being mis-sold on an enormous scale'. Meanwhile, Professor Vivien Lees, consultant plastic surgeon and vice president at the Royal College of Surgeons of England, said the current regulations surrounding such procedures are 'insufficient'. Prof Lees said: 'The global market cosmetic surgery is going to grow threefold, it's estimated, within the decade. 'So we're going to see a lot more problems in terms of absolute numbers. We need to set up a structure that will adequately support legitimate work.' Ms Collins added: 'If what happened to all these other women happened in any other context these perpetrators would be behind bars. Out of all of the women we are supporting, we urge all of them to go to the police and make formal reports, and not one of these cases, outside of Alice Webb who lost her life, has been taken seriously by police departments. 'And women are constantly being perceived as silly individuals that are making decisions through vanity, and therefore their complaints are not being taken seriously enough by regulators, and they're being failed.' On the impact on the NHS, Prof Lees said: 'We regularly (see) people both from this country and from overseas who've got acute problems that cannot be sorted out by the people who originally did the treatments. 'In the case of practitioners here, because they don't have the skillset to sort them, and in the case of overseas tourism, because the patient's too poorly or has otherwise lost confidence in the facility that treated them, so aren't going to go back again, and it will probably be unsafe for them to travel in any case.' She added: 'So I've seen things like a young woman with infected filler injection in the lips having to have chunks of her lip cut out … we can imagine what that will be like for her over a lifetime. 'I've seen infected buttock implants coming out, abscesses, bleeding problems in the middle of the night from clinics, actually medical clinics here that don't have the ability to treat their own complications. 'So that lands up with the NHS, and it's turning into a significant burden of work, particularly for the plastic surgeons, also for the breast surgeons on their service and clearly that's something that needs to be thought about.' It comes as nurses at the RCN annual meeting heard the trend of people travelling overseas for the likes of weight loss surgery, dental care and cosmetic procedures is 'likely to grow', despite some patients dying from complications. Nicola Smith, who works in district nursing, told delegates: 'Over the last two years, I've seen some horrendous, horrendous wounds coming back from people that have had surgery abroad.' She spoke of one woman whose wound from skin removal surgery – which is usually performed after weight loss – turned necrotic. Ms Smith added: 'I think she thought she would come home, have a quick recovery and go back to work. I ended up sending her in with sepsis. 'It's really sad, this procedure was sold to her as like a holiday package. 'A lot of young people are very exposed to social media. You know, 'you can have a holiday, six grand'.' Professor Sir Stephen Powis, NHS England's national medical director, said: 'I would urge people looking to have surgical treatments abroad or privately to carefully consider not only the safety standards of the clinic, but the aftercare provided, as these procedures can go wrong even if the right standards are in place. 'The NHS is far too often left to provide support for issues with surgical and cosmetic procedures carried out abroad. This puts unplanned pressure on teams who are working hard to deliver essential care for patients within the NHS.' Infection control nurse Nykoma Hamilton, of the RCN Fife branch, suggested companies that provide packages which include hotels, surgery and transfers to appointments should pay insurance for the NHS to seek financial compensation when complications arise. 'We've seen some horrid complications – the NHS should then be able to seek financial compensation from that company,' she said. She also raised concerns about antibiotic resistance linked to surgical tourism. 'Our concerns relate to the fact that a lot of people are colonised with a lot of extensively drug-resistant organisms,' Ms Hamilton said. 'Now that is a global health problem that affects us here in the UK, as well as abroad, but the infection control teams are getting slightly worried. 'So we've had a near 30% increase in the detection of carbapenemase resistance – now that's your absolute granddaddy of resistance ones.'
The Independent
14-05-2025
- Health
- The Independent
Cosmetic surgery being conducted in ‘living rooms and Airbnbs', MPs hear
Brazilian butt lifts (BBLs) are being carried out in people's living rooms, in Airbnbs and in hotel rooms and complications linked to cosmetic surgery have become a 'significant burden' on the NHS, MPs have heard. Ashton Collins, director of Save Face, a register of accredited practitioners for cosmetic surgery, told the Women and Equalities Committee there is a 'crisis waiting to happen' because of 'grey areas' in regulation. She called for legislation to ensure that such BBLs are conducted only by qualified surgeons – also known as Alice's Law, named after a young mother who died after a BBL. It comes as leading nurses raised concerns that surgical procedures abroad are too easily being sold as 'holiday packages', as they called for companies providing the operations to foot the NHS bill when things go wrong. So-called surgical tourism could also be driving a potentially deadly resistance to antibiotics, the Royal College of Nursing's annual congress in Liverpool heard. In Westminster, the committee also heard from a woman who nearly died after getting a BBL. Sasha Dean gave tearful testimony describing how she was admitted to intensive care with sepsis and kept in hospital for five weeks. 'The impact is profound,' she said as she told MPs how she was 'lulled into a sense of security' and she was 'misinformed'. 'These are being carried out by any anybody, they don't need any qualifications,' she told MPs. Ms Collins said: 'These are surgical procedures that should not be being carried out on the high street – they are being carried out in people's living rooms, in Airbnbs, in hotel rooms, by people who are using products that they're buying unlicensed from places like China and Korea. 'They are decanting them from huge vats into individual syringes and inject thousands of millilitres into people's breasts and buttocks. 'And then when things go wrong, they are misdiagnosing these problems and telling them there's nothing to worry about, and luckily, all of these women have taken themselves off to hospital, because if they hadn't, there would have been countless deaths in the UK because of this, and it shouldn't be allowed to happen.' And Ms Collins said social media is a 'hotbed for unscrupulous practitioners' promoting cosmetic surgery, with young people 'being mis-sold on an enormous scale'. Meanwhile, Professor Vivien Lees, consultant plastic surgeon and vice president at the Royal College of Surgeons of England, said the current regulations surrounding such procedures are 'insufficient'. Prof Lees said: 'The global market cosmetic surgery is going to grow threefold, it's estimated, within the decade. 'So we're going to see a lot more problems in terms of absolute numbers. We need to set up a structure that will adequately support legitimate work.' Ms Collins added: 'If what happened to all these other women happened in any other context these perpetrators would be behind bars. Out of all of the women we are supporting, we urge all of them to go to the police and make formal reports, and not one of these cases, outside of Alice Webb who lost her life, has been taken seriously by police departments. 'And women are constantly being perceived as silly individuals that are making decisions through vanity, and therefore their complaints are not being taken seriously enough by regulators, and they're being failed.' On the impact on the NHS, Prof Lees said: 'We regularly (see) people both from this country and from overseas who've got acute problems that cannot be sorted out by the people who originally did the treatments. 'In the case of practitioners here, because they don't have the skillset to sort them, and in the case of overseas tourism, because the patient's too poorly or has otherwise lost confidence in the facility that treated them, so aren't going to go back again, and it will probably be unsafe for them to travel in any case.' She added: 'So I've seen things like a young woman with infected filler injection in the lips having to have chunks of her lip cut out … we can imagine what that will be like for her over a lifetime. 'I've seen infected buttock implants coming out, abscesses, bleeding problems in the middle of the night from clinics, actually medical clinics here that don't have the ability to treat their own complications. 'So that lands up with the NHS, and it's turning into a significant burden of work, particularly for the plastic surgeons, also for the breast surgeons on their service and clearly that's something that needs to be thought about.' It comes as nurses at the RCN annual meeting heard the trend of people travelling overseas for the likes of weight loss surgery, dental care and cosmetic procedures is 'likely to grow', despite some patients dying from complications. Nicola Smith, who works in district nursing, told delegates: 'Over the last two years, I've seen some horrendous, horrendous wounds coming back from people that have had surgery abroad.' She spoke of one woman whose wound from skin removal surgery – which is usually performed after weight loss – turned necrotic. Ms Smith added: 'I think she thought she would come home, have a quick recovery and go back to work. I ended up sending her in with sepsis. 'It's really sad, this procedure was sold to her as like a holiday package. 'A lot of young people are very exposed to social media. You know, 'you can have a holiday, six grand'.' Professor Sir Stephen Powis, NHS England's national medical director, said: 'I would urge people looking to have surgical treatments abroad or privately to carefully consider not only the safety standards of the clinic, but the aftercare provided, as these procedures can go wrong even if the right standards are in place. 'The NHS is far too often left to provide support for issues with surgical and cosmetic procedures carried out abroad. This puts unplanned pressure on teams who are working hard to deliver essential care for patients within the NHS.' Infection control nurse Nykoma Hamilton, of the RCN Fife branch, suggested companies that provide packages which include hotels, surgery and transfers to appointments should pay insurance for the NHS to seek financial compensation when complications arise. 'We've seen some horrid complications – the NHS should then be able to seek financial compensation from that company,' she said. She also raised concerns about antibiotic resistance linked to surgical tourism. 'Our concerns relate to the fact that a lot of people are colonised with a lot of extensively drug-resistant organisms,' Ms Hamilton said. 'Now that is a global health problem that affects us here in the UK, as well as abroad, but the infection control teams are getting slightly worried. 'So we've had a near 30% increase in the detection of carbapenemase resistance – now that's your absolute granddaddy of resistance ones.'
