A woman has died in Turkey while undergoing gastric band surgery.
Scottish woman Shannon Bowe, aged 28, tragically died during the procedure last Saturday, April 1, Mirror UK reports. Pals say they have been left “devastated” by her death and tributes have poured in for her on social media.
A source close to Shannon said: “Everyone is totally devastated Shannon was one of the kindest people I knew and she would do anything for anyone.
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“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.”
A gastric band is a band that's placed around the stomach, creating a small pouch towards the top. It takes less food to fill the pouch, so you do not need to eat as much before you feel full, according to the NHS.
Meanwhile, dozens of people who travelled to Turkey in recent weeks for procedures involving stomach injections with Botox have been infected with botulism, a life-threatening condition that causes paralysis.
From late February until March 30, a total of 87 cases of botulism have been linked to Botox stomach injections, marking an increase of 20 since it was first reported in early March.
Of the 87 cases reported by the European Centre for Disease Control, 53 happened in Turkey, 30 in Germany, two in Switzerland, one in France and one in Austria.
A Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office spokesperson 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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