St Hugh's Hospital offers free removal of PIP implants

ALL 42 women who had PIP implants fitted in Grimsby will be able to have them removed and replaced for free.

And today, we can reveal that 10 of those have suffered ruptures or leaks.

Here to help: St Hugh's hospital director Donna Read with one of the implants.

As reported, it came to light in the new year that the breast implants, made by a French company, could be toxic and at a high risk of rupturing.



At the time, bosses at Grimsby's St Hugh's Hospital vowed to help the women, even though the surgery they had was through a separate company renting space out of their theatre.

While the NHS recommended that private hospitals that used the implants offered to remove them for free, St Hugh's was in a unique position because the Poly Implant Prothese (PIP) implants were used by The Cosmetic Surgery Centre Ltd, which rented out space at the Peaks Lane site between 2005 and 2008 and then ceased trade in 2010.

Taking on responsibility in a bid to help, the private hospital organised free consultations and MRI scans for all 42 women affected in the area.

Only a couple of women still require a scan but results so far have revealed 10 women had implants which had either ruptured or leaked.

These will now be removed and replaced as a priority at St Hugh's by Alastair Platt and Mohammed Riaz from Hull Plastic Surgeons.

Hospital director Donna Read, said: "We are offering all 42 women free removal and replacement of the implants, and the 10 with ruptures or leaks will be the priority.

"Over the past few months we have tried our best to do what we can for these women.

"It has been difficult as it was a third party who carried out the surgery and not us.

"The decision to fund this free service has come after discussions with the chief executive officer and board of the Hospital Management Trust.

"In addition a care pathway has been developed with ourselves, the Care Trust Plus, GPs and consultant surgeons.

"The number of ruptured implants after scans doubled my expectations but now these women will be made priority to have surgery – some have already been in theatre.

"It will take a long time for all women to be seen to but we are doing our best as we always said we would."

One woman, who did not wish to be named, found that her right implant had ruptured following her MRI scan.

She said: "I am just waiting on a date now for my operation but it is such a weight off my mind that I will finally have them out.

"Thankfully, my rupture is only small and has not damaged other parts of my body.

"I am grateful to St Hugh's for offering free MRI scans as without it, I would never have known about the rupture.

"Facing another operation does scare me.

"Obviously it will have a knock-on effect to my everyday life with time off work for treatment and recovery.

"However, I would rather have this than my health be affected."

As reported, last month, the former senior executive of the French company behind the implants, Jean-Claude Mas, 72, and another former director, Claude Couty, were arrested at their homes.