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Evening Standard
Evening Standard
World
Sami Quadri

British woman dies while in Turkey for gastric band operation

A British woman died after travelling to Turkey to undergo gastric band surgery.

Shannon Bowe, 28, from Denny, Stirlingshire, is understood to have died in the country on Saturday.

Tributes flooded in for her as UK consular officials confirmed they had been in contact with her family.

It has been reported that she did not have any travel insurance and her family is now facing a huge bill to bring her body back home.

Among those paying their condolences was Ms Bowe’s boyfriend, Ross Stirling.

On a social media platform, he described her as an “angel”, adding: “Sleep tight, love you forever and always.”

Writing on Facebook, a family friend said: “Shannon was one of the kindest people I knew and she would do anything for anyone.

“She was the life and soul of a party. It is so sad. These operations obviously are risky but it is so rare you hear of this happening.

“Everyone is finding it really hard to believe she is no longer with us.

“She did not have any travel insurance and her family are now going to have to pay thousands of pounds to bring her back home.

“This is the last thing they need to worry about.”

Gastric band surgery is a weight loss procedure which involves placing a band around the stomach to decrease food consumption.

It has become increasingly popular with thousands of Britons, with many opting to travel to Turkey to have the work carried out.

So far, it is unclear where Ms Bowe had travelled to undergo the operation or what led to her death.

A Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office spokesman said: “We are supporting the family of a British national who died in Turkey and are in contact with the local authorities.”

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