Brit mum, 29, who died after £3,000 ‘Brazilian bum lift’ in Turkey ‘had wanted world’s most deadly cosmetic surgery for ages’
Leah Cambridge, from Leeds, West Yorks, collapsed shortly after the op at the clinic used by Lauren Goodger
A BRITISH mum who died after having a £3,000 "Brazilian bum lift" in Turkey had wanted the "world's most deadly cosmetic surgery" for ages, an inquest has heard.
Leah Cambridge, from Leeds, West Yorks, collapsed shortly after the op at the clinic loved by Towie stars, including Lauren Goodger.
The 29-year-old is said to have arranged the surgery through a firm named Elite Aftercare, which acts as a go-between linking clients and surgeons.
Wakefield Coroner's Court had previously been told how she travelled to Izmir in August last year to have the "butt lift", but died following complications in the procedure.
During a pre-inquest review hearing today, the mum-of-three's partner, Scott Franks, revealed how she had been interested in having the surgery for some time.
He said: "She spoke with me regarding it on several occasions, and it was obvious that she was quite interested in doing it for some time.
"Obviously she's booked it and just gone, and that's it, she's gone."
She spoke with me regarding it on several occasions, and it was obvious that she was quite interested in doing it for some time
Scott Franks
Mr Franks also said his girlfriend, who has three boys, was told that she would need to put on just over a stone (7kg) prior to having the work done.
Speaking about Ms Cambridge, the family's representative Richard Paige told the inquest: "This was very much done on her own volition."
Mr Paige also quoted a report from the British Association of Aesthetic Plastic Surgeons (Baaps) which suggests that the "Brazilian buttock lift" has the highest death rate, believed to be as high as one in every 3,000 operations, of all cosmetic surgery procedures.
The report, issued in October last year, suggests that surgeons refrain from performing the treatment until more data can be obtained, due to "the risk of injecting fat into large veins that can travel to the heart or brain and cause severe illness and death".
THE 'DEADLIEST COSMETIC PROCEDURE' IN THE WORLD
BRAZILIAN bum lifts are the "deadliest cosmetic procedure", a top surgeon has warned.
The controversial op involves taking fat from other areas of the body and injecting it into the glutes and bum to make them bigger.
But, if it's not done correctly, it can cause serious problems, Professor for aesthetic surgery Jim Frame from Anglia Ruskin University warned.
";To be successful, a fat graft needs nutrition and so has to be injected into tissue that has a blood supply," Prof Frame said.
"Fat has more chance of staying in place if it is inserted into muscle – but this is where the risk lies.
"Injecting fat into the buttocks can easily lead to serious problems if done incorrectly. These include a fat embolism, when fat enters the bloodstream and blocks a blood vessel.
"In the lungs, for example, it blocks oxygen from entering the bloodstream, while in the brain it can cause a stroke – both can be fatal."
Cheap overseas clinics are contributing to a rise in deaths from having the procedure, Prof Frame, a senior consultant surgeon at Springfield Hospital, Chelmsford, said.
Last year a survey of 692 surgeons from across the world found 32 patients had died from a condition called a fat embolism - where the injected fat travels to other parts of the body that it shouldn't.
""Most of these deaths appear to have been caused by inappropriately qualified practitioners working in non-approved facilities, including homes and garages," he added.
"Other post-surgery problems, such as gangrene and sepsis, can also be fatal."
Sarah Hemingway, representing Elite Aftercare at the inquest, told how the firm does not directly employ the surgeons themselves, and has no formal contract with the hospital involved in the surgery.
But Mr Paige explained how the company's website claims to employ "the best surgeons and nurses" for procedures.
The inquest also heard how Ms Cambridge had been asked to fill in a ";patient information anaesthesia form" prior to travelling for the surgery, but no direct contact was made between Elite Aftercare and her GP.
A provisional post-mortem examination had previously revealed that the mum died from a fat embolism caused by a cosmetic surgical procedure.
It had been reported that the beautician had been paranoid about having excess stomach weight from having children, and opted for the butt lift procedure, which involves the reshaping of the buttocks by transferring fat from other areas including the stomach and back.
Reports in the aftermath of her death told how Ms Cambridge had three heart attacks during the operation, which took place on August 27 last year.
Nip and tuck at sea villa
ELITE Aftercare offers cosmetic surgery from a luxury villa outside Izmir with plush double bedrooms and sea views.
Two resident surgeons offer butt lifts, tummy tucks, boob jobs, liposuction, arm lifts, nose jobs and cheek implants.
Patients make appointments at a UK office before travelling to Turkey for the surgery.
The clinic’s website claims: “Elite Aftercare aims to provide a UK standard of care.”
One reality star who had surgery there said last year: “It’s not a dodgy back street clinic.
“I weighed up whether to have my nose job in the UK or over there and chose Turkey.
“They’re constantly checking you’re all OK. They’re not going to discharge you if they don’t think you’re fit to leave the hospital. I was fine.”
During Tuesday's hearing, the coroner suggested that a three-day inquest into her death would take place in early July, focusing on the contact between Ms Cambridge and Elite Aftercare, any pre-assessments done prior to the treatment, and the procedure itself.
The controversial Brazilian butt lift, made famous by US reality TV star Kim Kardashian, involves taking fat from the waist or stomach and inserting it in the buttocks.
The operation takes between one and two hours and involves a tiny cannula being inserted into a 2mm hole to extract fat.
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The fat is then purified and re-injected into the buttocks.
According to Elite Aftercare's website, Towie stars Lauren Goodger and Amber Dowding and Geordie Shore’s Chloe Ferry, have had procedures there.
Former Spurs footballer Jamie O'Hara also had liposuction at the same Izmir clinic last year after piling on the pounds by scoffing junk food on Celebrity Big Brother.
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