Bride-to-be reveals her nipple dropped off after boob job in Turkey

  • Madison Goodwin, from Southend-on-Sea, paid £4,000 for the surgery in April 
  • WARNING: GRAPHIC CONTENT 

A bride-to-be has told of her agony after an ‘impulse’ buy boob job in Turkey saw her nipple turn black and drop off.

Madison Goodwin, from Southend-on-Sea in Essex, paid £4,000 in April for the surgery in an effort to make her ‘big, saggy’ breasts perkier.

The 19-year-old opted for a cut-price clinic in Istanbul — where thousands of Britons flock to for cheap surgery every year — as she didn’t ‘want to be spending silly amounts of money’. 

But just days after her operation the model discovered her nipple was bright purple and claims she overheard a doctor say ‘it was done wrong but I corrected it’.

After being reassured it would heal quickly, Ms Goodwin returned to the UK and kept in touch with her surgeon sending them pictures.  

Madison Goodwin, from Southend-on-Sea in Essex, paid £4,000 in April for the surgery in an effort to make her ‘big, saggy’ breasts perkier. The 19-year-old opted for a cut-price clinic in Istanbul — where thousands of Britons flock to for cheap surgery every year — as she didn’t ‘want to be spending silly amounts of money’

But just days later the model discovered her nipple was bright purple and claimed she overheard a doctor say ‘it was done wrong but I corrected it’. After being reassured it would heal quickly, Ms Goodwin returned to the UK

She was left horrified, however, after removing the bandages 12 days post-surgery to find her skin had turned black and her nipple ‘hanging on by a thread’. She is now waiting for the necrotic tissue to heal or drop off before she can get skin graft in the UK

She was left horrified, however, after removing the bandages 12 days post-surgery to find her skin had turned black and her nipple ‘hanging on by a thread’. 

She is now waiting for the necrotic tissue to heal or drop off before she can get skin graft in the UK.

Recalling her ordeal, Ms Goodwin said: ‘I had a baby in January, unfortunately she was a stillbirth.

‘My boobs felt very saggy and my nipples were really big, they never went back to normal.

‘I just wanted them quite perky and a bit rounder and bigger.

‘At the time I was looking around for surgeons in London but it was £9,000 and I’m saving for a house.

‘I didn’t want to be spending silly amounts of money so I just thought about Turkey because someone I knew had gone to that specific surgeon and they were really happy with their results.’

She added: ‘I felt fully trusting and was like “I’ll just go out there” and it was half the price, it was £4,000.

‘I’m not going to lie, I didn’t really do much research. It was on quite an impulse.

‘I was excited. My mum booked the flights and we really thought we were going to go out there and, although I knew I’d be healing, we really thought it would be like a mini getaway.’

After discovering her nipple was ‘starting to peel off’, she rushed to Southend University Hospital in May and was referred to Broomfield Hospital in Chelmsford the following day

Typically, breast implant surgery costs around £6,000 in the UK. But in Turkey this can be as little as £3,200. 

This does not usually include the cost of consultations or follow-up care.

The NHS warns Britons to understand how the procedure works and the risks involved before going abroad for treatment. 

It advises people to consider if there will be any language barriers, whether they know enough about who is performing the treatment and the facilities available and how to make a complaint if things go wrong. 

After discovering her nipple was ‘starting to peel off’, she rushed to Southend University Hospital in May and was referred to Broomfield Hospital in Chelmsford the following day.

Ms Goodwin said: ‘I went to hospital and explained the situation. The doctor took the bandages off really carefully, you could see it was still hanging on by a thread but it didn’t come off fully.

‘At that point my nipple had become necrotic and was black in certain places. 

‘They sent me to another hospital, when they took the bandages off the nipple came off, it was just a big bit of skin.

‘I’m assuming where my nipple had come off it opened my stitches below my breast so then I had an open wound of stitches.

‘It genuinely looked like a shark bite, I felt horrible. They kept talking that I’d have to get a skin graft or a nipple tattoo.’

She has now been referred by her GP to a wound specialist and claims she has been told her nipple ‘won’t heal unless the necrotic tissue either falls off or gets surgically removed’.

Ms Goodwin, who is due to get married in December, said: ‘I’m just waiting to see when it heals, there’s only a bit of black necrotic tissue left.

‘Flying back to Turkey for [more] surgery was out of the question, even the hospital said don’t go back to them.

‘It’s not necessarily that they did it wrong, the hospital said it’s possibly just your body rejecting it in general [the nipple reconstruction].

She has now been referred by her GP to a wound specialist and claims she has been told her nipple ‘won’t heal unless the necrotic tissue either falls off or gets surgically removed’

Ms Goodwin, who is due to get married in December, said: ‘ I’m just waiting to see when it heals, there’s only a bit of black necrotic tissue left. Flying back to Turkey for [more] surgery was out of the question, even the hospital said don’t go back to them.’ Pictured, messages between Ms Goodwin and her surgeon

Now Ms Goodwin is urging anyone considering surgery abroad to opt instead for the UK to ensure any issues can be seen to immediately. Pictured, messages between Ms Goodwin and her surgeon

‘Their point is that the surgeon in Turkey knew it was going bad and still sent me back, so if they’re comfortable doing that then I shouldn’t trust them.’

Now Ms Goodwin is urging anyone considering surgery abroad to opt instead for the UK to ensure any issues can be seen to immediately. 

She said: ‘I think if you’re ever going to get any kind of lift that should be done in England, because if I’d left it longer and listened to the surgeon I don’t even know what would have happened.

‘They told me at the hospital I could have died if I’d left it longer, it was really, really bad.

‘Any girl who wants anything to do with their nipples done, just get it in England because it’s so risky.

‘At least if something goes wrong, they’re so on the ball to help you.

‘They’ve said it could take six months to heal. My wedding dress is off the shoulder so I’m hoping it will heal beforehand.’

She added: ‘Now I feel disgusted looking at my boobs.

‘[As a model], my job is based off what my body looks like. I’m flying out to Thailand in a week and my bandages are on show.

‘I can’t even get a nice picture in a bikini. I know that’s not the be-all and end all but that’s my job — I need to look good in clothes.’

British surgeons have raised the alarm about the rising NHS multi-million bill of fixing botched cosmetic ops performed overseas, with costing the NHS an estimated £100,000 alone

The Committee for Advertising Practice (CAP) said ‘too many’ overseas clinics are putting people at risk of harm by promoting their services irresponsibly. Liposuction that offers to remove up to 15 litres of fat, BBL’s, eye colour changing laser treatments and hymenoplasties are all offered in clinics across Turkey

The British Association of Aesthetic Plastic Surgeons analysed 324 cases of Brits needing medical treatment or corrective surgery after having gone under the knife overseas since 2018

Surgeons have grown increasingly concerned about the number of Brits heading to medical tourism hubs like Turkey in recent years.

UK Government data has recorded over 25 deaths of Brits following medical procedures in the country.

The British Association of Aesthetic Plastic Surgeons (BAAPS) found 324 Brits have needed medical treatment or corrective surgery after having gone under the knife overseas since 2018.

This has surged 94 per cent in three years, the organisation claimed, as increasing numbers of Brits seek to look more like their celebrity idols

Turkey was the largest source of botched ops, the BAAPS figures suggested.

Almost 80 per cent of Brits who needed corrective ops in the last year were treated originally in surgical tourism hubs like Istanbul and Ankara.

Procedures to treat botched cosmetic ops cost the NHS millions of pounds each year. 

BAAPS estimates the average cost to the health service of treating a Brit botched overseas is about £15,000, putting the total bill since 2018 at about £4.8million.

This bill represents the cost of resources like medication and dressings, as well as the time surgeons and other NHS staff must spend on such cases.

While the £15,000 figure is an average, surgeons have previously told this website more serious cases can cost upwards of £100,000 to the taxpayer. 

Some cases include patients suffering infections from improperly cleaned wounds or of surgical tools or objects being left in body after an operation. 

The red flags of getting cosmetic surgery abroad

All surgery carries risk, but it is important to do your research before hopping on a plane to get cheap plastic surgery. 

Although it can cost less than getting surgery in the UK, you need to bear in mind that the safety standards may not be the same. 

Holiday packages 

You should be cautious of any website that sell cosmetic surgery as part of a holiday, the NHS warns. 

Some websites sell the idea of sightseeing alongside hotels with breakfast included. 

NHS advice adds that if you are looking at holiday packages make sure you have a consultation with a surgeon and don’t just meet a salesperson. 

The health service adds that you should not pay to see a surgeon you have never met.  

The Royal College of Surgeons of England also echoes the NHS’s concerns and advises to not agree to cosmetic surgery before meeting the surgeon and visiting the hospital.

UK plastic surgeon Veerle Rotsaert said: ‘Travelling long-haul overseas to have surgery done, followed by no proper aftercare, that’s where often things go wrong.

‘Often third party agencies sell surgery without any surgeon ever seeing the patient in person and having a proper consultation until it is actually surgery day.’

Extra costs

Many of the surgeries offered overseas in countries such as Turkey are more affordable than private clinics in the UK.

However, there could be hidden costs. 

The Royal College of Surgeons of England urges people to consider the cost for additional flights and hotel stays for future corrective, or touch-up procedures.

It also warns patients to consider what might happen overseas if they pay ahead of time but change their mind before the operation as their right to a refund could vary in different countries. 

Choosing the right surgeon

Surgeons and clinics are regulated differently in different countries and standards can vary.

Before traveling abroad for surgery the NHS says you should ask if the surgeon is fully trained in the surgery you want and how long they have been practicing for. 

The surgeon should also be fully insured to carry out the surgery you want, says the Royal College of Surgeons of England. It suggests asking to see details of the surgeons insurance. 

It is also vital you have a proper consultation with your surgeon before you consent to having the surgery, experts warn.

Risks of flying 

Flying and having major surgery increases your risk of getting a blood clot, which can be life threatening. 

As a result, the NHS warns people should wait five to seven days to fly after procedures such as breast surgery and liposuction and wait seven to 10 days to fly after facial cosmetic procedures or tummy tucks.

However, some surgeons suggest waiting between two to six weeks before flying depending on the procedure. 

Dr Rotsaert explained: ‘This is because first of all, you want patients to stay relatively close to their surgeon in case of any immediate post-op issues.’

He added: Secondly because of the deep vein thrombosis/pulmonary embolism risk associated with the act of surgery, it’s aftermath, as well as prolonged immobilisation.’

Drinking plenty of water, avoiding alcohol and walking about during your flight can help circulation, but this doesn’t completely remove the risk of a blood clot especially having major surgery, the British Association of Plastic Reconstruction and Aesthetic Surgeons (BAPRAS). 

Aftercare

Follow up care after your surgery is an important part of your treatment. But traveling abroad can make it more complicated. 

Before getting surgery outside of the UK consider how long it would take you to travel back to your surgeon if there is a complication, says the Royal College of Surgeons of England.

Make sure you have a contact for a named doctor that can deal with any complications, rather than a helpline, experts warn. 

You need to also make sure the clinic will deal with any problems and that they will help if you are not happy with your outcome. 

In many cases the NHS will not help you unless you have a serious complication which requires emergency or life-saving support. 

Source: NHS, BAPRAS and Royal College of Surgeons England.