Doctor's warning over Turkish weight loss surgery

Hayley Butler began suffering from pain and vomiting soon after undergoing surgery in Turkey

An obesity doctor has told an inquest his team has dealt with more than 100 problems in patients who have undergone weight loss surgery in Turkey.

Tanveer Adil, who works at Luton & Dunstable Hospital, was giving evidence at the inquest of 40-year-old Hayley Butler, a dog groomer from Norwich who died of organ failure after a sleeve gastrectomy at the Ozel Gozde Hospital in Izmir.

He said Miss Butler had died as a result of the procedure and the "lack of safety netting" afterwards.

Norfolk area coroner Yvonne Blake said it was clear the operation "had not been done properly".

Hayley Butler had apparently waited two years to be seen for weight loss surgery in the UK before flying to Turkey

Miss Butler flew to Izmir with a friend in September 2024 for the operation to remove a large part of her stomach after apparently failing to get help in the UK, the inquest in Norwich heard.

Flights, transfers, accommodation, pre-op tests and medication were all included in the trip at a cost of about £2,500.

After the procedure, the hearing was told she was given a 'fit to fly' letter from the hospital and returned home two days later, but was already feeling unwell.

In a statement read by the coroner, her mother Gill Moore said Miss Butler was "constantly thirsty and had no energy... but thought it was normal".

She added: "Things got worse over the weekend of the 5 October; she was projectile vomiting and could only consume tiny amounts of anything."

Miss Butler was admitted to Norfolk and Norwich Hospital and later transferred to a specialist bariatric unit at Luton and Dunstable Hospital on the morning of 11 October.

She eventually went into surgery at 17:00 and afterwards Mrs Moore said she was told her daughter had a 30% chance of survival.

She died on 24 October of multiple organ failure due to sepsis.

Mrs Moore said a doctor told her it was "the worst case he'd ever seen".

Mr Adil told the court surgeons found fluid in Miss Butler's abdomen and four perforations in organs.

He said it was his opinion the cause of her death was "what happened in Turkey and the lack of safety netting after major bariatric surgery".

The tertiary bariatric unit at his hospital had witnessed a "significant rise in complications" from similar procedures in the country, he told the hearing.

"We have managed more than 100 such complications in our unit, which is a matter of significant concern," said Mr Adil.

Mrs Moore said there was a lack of communication and support from medics at the Luton hospital as her daughter's life support was removed and she died, which she said would haunt her for the rest of her life.

Coroner Ms Blake, who recorded a narrative conclusion, said that "the way they [staff] left you to be with Hayley when she died was astonishing".

She said she would raise concerns about Miss Butler's sleeve gastrectomy with regulators in Turkey.

The Ozel Gozde Hospital and Luton & Dunstable Hospital have been approached for comment.