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Ethicon Media Monitoring 9/17/2018
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Ella E Remembers Her Philadelphia Mesh Trial as McFarland Winds Down
Sep 14, 2018 | Mesh Medical Device News Desk
By Jane Akre
Mesh News Desk wanted to visit with Ella Ebaugh as the seventh transvaginal mesh trial to be held in the Philadelphia Court of Common Pleas is about to wind down. -
Review finds surgeons did not report women's vaginal mesh complications to watchdog
Sep 17, 2018 | thejournal.ie
By Michelle Hennessy
Ireland’s health watchdog has not received any notifications from surgeons about issues with vaginal mesh implants, despite reports of serious complications by some women who had these procedures. -
Mesh campaigners welcome Government ban but say the fight goes on
Sep 16, 2018 | The Sunday Post
By Marion Scott
The women who first gave a voice to Scotland’s mesh victims yesterday welcomed a ban announced by Holyrood ministers last week. -
PM honours unsung heroes at Health Hero Awards
Sep 16, 2018 | Infosurhoy
By Marta Subat
Theresa May last night paid tribute to the unsung health heroes who ‘epitomise the very best of the NHS’. -
Helen Martin: Spend tourist tax revenue on us, not the tourists
Sep 17, 2018 | Edinburgh Evening News
By Helen Martin
The possible introduction of tourism tax may not be quite as controversial as the creation of a tram system was in Edinburgh (and still is now that we’re on the brink of an extension).
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Ella E Remembers Her Philadelphia Mesh Trial as McFarland Winds Down
Sep 14, 2018 | Mesh Medical Device News Desk
By Jane Akre
Mesh News Desk wanted to visit with Ella Ebaugh as the seventh transvaginal mesh trial to be held in the Philadelphia Court of Common Pleas is about to wind down.
It was 8 months ago that Ms. Ebaugh sat in the very same court as Susan McFarland, who is in the middle of her product liability case against Johnson & Johnson (Ethicon).
Both women were implanted with the company’s pelvic mesh – McFarland with a TVT-O and Ebaugh with a TVT (tension-free vaginal tape) and a TVT-S (Secur). Both meshes are part of the Ethicon ( Johnson & Johnson) family of transvaginal polypropylene meshes.
There is another similarity – Ebaugh’s implanting doctor was trained by the same person who trained McFarland’s – Dr. Vincent Lucente, the preceptor/ consultant for Ethicon who has made millions training and encouraging doctors to use the company’s products.
While MND is not inside the courtroom and has covered it from the exhibits being shown and the expert reports, Ebaugh tells readers what it is like to be in her place and what McFarland may be feeling.
Ella Ebaugh ~ “Here you are in trial and it’s a small courtroom. You see your lawyer and two other people on your team. In comes the defense team with ten lawyers and ten on their side and they just walk around. I think they are trying to intimidate you.
“So we are sitting there and my husband was with me the whole time, Thank God. The jurors come in and you sit there and for a month are looking at these people the whole time. They don’t look at you. They’re straight faced. You don’t know what they’re thinking.”
“Kila went first with the opening statements. She gave her opening and I felt amazed. She said everything perfectly. That was so good and convincing.
“Then the defense tries to tear you down.”
“Kat Gallagher, I listened to her version. She and Curt, whoever it was, they go and say negative things. She had depression, a couple of things they weren’t allowed to say. They were saying my father was abusive. That you were depressed before the mesh. They go through that I had infections at the age of 12 or 16 when I had my first UTI. So they go way back. They were trying to say I had UTIs on a regular basis and the mesh isn’t causing my UTIs now. They go through your history.”
“They try to spin it that you are the bad guy.”
“The defense will say all kinds of things. I was so emotionally distraught to listen to them lie and tear me apart, it was so hurtful. These are big wigs they (jurors) are going to believe what they say and not the victim, I thought.”
“When they got done I was like, “Oh my gosh,” I was just, there’s no way I’m gonna have a chance. I talked to my attorney and she said ‘Ella its okay.’ I went to the hotel and prayed on it and that moment I felt fine, I felt at ease and I knew everything would be okay.”
“Even when we had to wait more than two days for the jury to come back, my husband said why are you not nervous? I said I’m in such a good place. I felt so comfortable with the job my attorneys did. A place I’ve never been before. I was just at ease. What a wonderful job my attorneys did.”“I told them I was glad to have my voice heard. It was so much weight lifted off my back. My attorneys were able to produce
information they (Ethicon) lied and manipulated the data, they had emails. It was such a relief.”“When the jury came back, I sobbed, I broke out. I was sobbing like a baby. It was just that emotional and physical and I was glad it was over. The jurors then looked straight at us. When I turned to look at them they nodded their head and smiled. At the end we were able to talk to them. I gave every single one of them a hug and thanked them. They said we deserved it.”“If I could say anything to Ms. McFarland is that they are going to lie and make you out to be the bad guy. Just believe in yourself. Stay true to yourself. Don’t let you them bring you down. Stay positive and just trust that the jury sees through their lies.”
Postscript* – Ella reminds us, “Even if poor Susan wins her case, we are still being victimized because of the appeals process. They are still allowed to get away with it for 4 or 5 ore years. Adding insult to injury. It’s being victimized all over again and I feel story for all mesh sisters. I have no idea how I got so lucky to go to trial. My attorney pushed hard for my case to go through.”
The Susan McFarland v. Ethicon defective product trial may wrap up the week of the 17th. It will be the seventh transvaginal mesh trial to be held in the Philadelphia Court of Common Please. All but one of them has delivered a jury verdict for the plaintiff including millions of dollars in punitive damages against Ethicon.
https://www.meshmedicaldevicenewsdesk.com/ella-e-remembers-her-philadelphia-mesh-trial-as-mcfarland-winds-down/
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Review finds surgeons did not report women's vaginal mesh complications to watchdog
Sep 17, 2018 | thejournal.ie
By Michelle Hennessy
Ireland’s health watchdog has not received any notifications from surgeons about issues with vaginal mesh implants, despite reports of serious complications by some women who had these procedures.
The watchdog has received 76 reports in total about these devices, but all of these were from members of the public, TheJournal.ie can reveal. Surgeons working in this area have said the Health and Products Regulatory Authority’s guidelines recommend reporting of incidents involving a medical device which might have led to the death of a patient or to serious deterioration in their state of health – particularly if the frequency of complications is higher than expected.
A representative group for the surgeons has said its members, therefore, will not have submitted reports as the rate of serious complications they were seeing among their patients was not higher than the expected rate deduced from prior studies.
However, in July this year, Minister for Health Simon Harris announced that the HSE had been directed to stop the use of all procedures involving vaginal mesh devices in public hospitals. This pause covers the management of stress urinary incontinence (SUI) and pelvic organ prolapse (POP), two conditions women can suffer after natural childbirth or in their later years.
The mesh devices, usually in the form of a thin tape, are made with polypropylene and are designed to strengthen the surrounding muscle and tissue, as it grows into and around the device.
In recent years women in several countries, including the US, Australia, the UK and other European countries, have reported painful complications after their procedures. The device can break up inside the body and move, embedding itself in other organs or tissue – in some cases poking or cutting through the vaginal wall.
Irish women have reported suffering chronic pain and recurrent infections for a number of years and some have had to have multiple surgeries to try to remove the device. Because of how the implant works, these removal procedures – many of which women have had to travel to the UK for – are complicated and have been described by surgeons as “like taking hair out of chewing gum”.
Now it has emerged that despite complications reported by women to their doctors and follow-up treatment – including surgeries – they required, not one clinician in the country notified the Health and Products Regulatory Authority (HPRA).
This was revealed in documents released by the Department of Health to TheJournal.iethrough a Freedom of Information request.
Investigations
In November last year, Minister Harris asked the Chief Medical Officer (CMO) to compile a report on the use of these medical devices.
In a briefing note to the minister in May, before the CMO Tony Holohan requested the suspension, his office outlined a number of preliminary findings from his scoping review. One of these findings was that 76 reports in relation to these devices had been made to the HPRA, “all from members of the public”.
“No reports have been received from implanting surgeons to date,” it noted.
Reporting issues or concerns to the HPRA is through a voluntary system, but the watchdog says increased levels of reporting from healthcare professionals “may help in the early detection of adverse trends or safety issues”.
In response to a query about the lack of reporting by clinicians, Dr Susmita Sarma, president of the Continence Foundation of Ireland said:
“The mid-urethral sling was developed in the 1990s to treat female stress incontinence and has been extensively researched with over 2000s papers published in this time. The known complications of mesh erosion and mesh extrusion have been well documented with a rate of 4% in these papers.The HPRA in the guidelines recommends reporting ‘any incident which has occurred during use of the medical device which might lead to or might have led to the death of a patient, or user or of other persons or to a serious deterioration in their state of health’.
“Whilst reporting is encouraged by the HPRA especially if the frequency of serious complications is above the expected reported rate, if an individual consultant was not experiencing an increased erosion rate above the expected reported rate, there would not be an indication to report same.”
Sarma said the foundation’s “evidence based” position on the use of these procedures is that “alternative surgical treatments, which date back 60 years, are more invasive procedures associated with more complications and are less effective”.
She said the same nonabsorbable material is used in some of these older procedures.Our goal is to provide holistic care for informed women and give them the choice. Once governance issues relating to TVTs have been resolved we aim to return to providing what medical evidence has repeatedly found to be the safest and most effective treatment for women with stress incontinence. This country has recently voted that women’s choice is paramount. This is also the opinion of the Continence Foundation of Ireland.
‘Sexual, bladder and bowel difficulties’
The memo to the minister also revealed representations have been made to the Department of Health by more than 40 women in relation to mesh-associated complications.
“Several of these women have reported significant complications affecting their quality of life following mesh surgery including pain, incontinence and erosion of mesh causing sexual, bladder and bowel difficulties. Women have also reported difficulties in accessing appropriate aftercare for complications.”
Melanie Power, founder of the Mesh Survivors Ireland group and a solicitor who represents around 100 women taking legal action over complications, said the majority of women she has spoken to claim their doctors never mentioned the possible serious complications before their surgeries.
Many of those affected have also said their issues post-surgery were dismissed by their doctors.
“The standard thing is ‘your problems aren’t mesh related, it’s the menopause’ and that could be someone who went through the menopause 10 years beforehand. Another that has been said quite a few times is ‘you need to break through the pain barrier’, like a professional athlete. That was in relation to sex: ‘If you’re having painful sex, the need to break through the pain barrier.’ I heard that a few times from three or four different people.They were told they need to manage their pain – as if pain is something that is acceptable. People were being discharged from clinics with undiagnosed pelvic pain, left with nowhere to go but down the pain management route. Life as they know it is never going to be the same because they’re completely out of it.
Power said when news reports about mesh complications first appeared, some women spoke to their doctors about them.
“They were told ‘don’t believe what you read in the media’ or ‘the mesh in the news is not the mesh you have’, and in all cases it was the same mesh.”
She pointed out that while there is no mandatory obligation on clinicians to report complications to the HPRA, they are required to report issues to the HSE’s National Incident Management System (Nims).
“I did a Freedom of Information request myself last year and by November 2017 there were only two incidents reported to Nims.”
There are over 400 women in the Mesh Survivors Ireland support group with Power saying it is still growing. She said rebuilding the trust between impacted women and their doctors will one of the main challenges now.
“I have heard the things they have said to these women and it’s disgusting but for all the wrongs they have done, they are the ones with the expertise and they have to be the people who save these women at the end of the day,” she said. We went from a situation where we were told there was no need for anyone in the country to have full removal and that the HSE had no knowledge of anyone with the specialism to do full removal surgeries. Consultants were telling women they couldn’t do it. When the situation here changed, those very same clinicians were telling women they were able to do full removals.
“They need to be honest now and acknowledge that they need to engage in further training and rebuild the relationships with their patients.”
Paternalistic
Last week, Dr Gabriel Scally, who lead a scoping inquiry into the CervicalCheck scandal said there was a need for the health system to review its attitude towards women’s health issues.
In speaking with women and families affected by the scandal, Scally said one key point that surfaced was the paternalism in the healthcare system. Some of the comments from women featured in the report include:Why does it always happen to women?I think there is a history of looking at women’s health services as being secondary.Women and women’s rights are not taken seriously.
There were also examples of clinicians dismissing or downplaying the gravity of failing to disclose the findings of the CervicalCheck audit to women.
Speaking at the launch of the review Scally described how the family of one woman, who is deceased, was told “nuns don’t get cervical cancer”. That the same consultant highlighted the woman had been a smoker multiple times during the meeting.
“It’s verging on misogyny,” Scally said of those comments. Another woman was told by her consultant that he “had seen I had had a hysterectomy and decided I didn’t need to know”.
One of the recommendations in Dr Scally’s report was that the health minister give consideration to how women’s issues can be given “more consistent, expert, and committed attention” within the health system. He also said a new emphasis must be placed on the candour with which healthcare professionals speak to their patients.
Disputed figures
The CMO’s briefing document into the use of vaginal mesh devices acknowledges mesh can be “difficult to remove because mesh devices are designed to be permanently implanted”.
”All synthetic meshes are associated with some risk of mesh erosion, reported in some research studies to occur in 4% of SUI procedures and 4-19% of POP procedures. However these figures have been disputed as there is a recognised lack internationally of comprehensive long-term, follow-up data. Also, some of the complications women are reporting occurring several years after the implant may be difficult to distinguish from evolving symptoms of the underlying disease.
According to the interim findings, the evidence continues to support the use of current vaginal mesh devices in Ireland in appropriate cases when done by trained personnel.
However there are a number of deficiencies in the system, includingThere is no set description for consultants of what constitutes appropriate patient selection, appropriately trained personnel, or appropriate facilities;There are also no systematic approaches in place to make sure patients have the full information about risks and complications before they give their consent;No information is collected about patient outcomes;There are no agreed treatment pathways for women who suffer complications.
One of the principal challenges in compiling the report has been “poor quality of data available to measure and describe the extent of the problem”.Data is lacking at national level as to the total number of women who have received mesh implants or the numbers of women who have had or are awaiting mesh removal procedures.
Urgent recommendations
Writing to John Connaghan, acting director general of the HSE in July, CMO Tony Holohan requested an immediate pause of all procedures using these implants for stress urinary incontinence or pelvic organ prolapse.
The pause should remain in place pending confirmation of implementation of three “urgent recommendations”.Surgery should only be carried out by appropriately trained surgeons on the specialist registrar who have undertaken relevant subspeciality training. HSE should establish a list or registry of persons qualified to undertake them.Develop appropriate patient information material and consent material.Develop and maintain data collection of all mesh procedures in HSE hospitals. Holohan referenced safety concerns about other devices such as breast implants and hip prostheses and the need for long-term monitoring.
He requested the HSE put in place a data collection system to ensure that information about numbers, locations and types of uro-gynaecological mesh procedures carried out in HSE-funded hospitals is routinely collected and centrally collated.
Holohan’s final report to the minister is likely to recommend that the suspension is not lifted until all of these recommendations have been implemented, as well as the delivery of appropriate aftercare for women with complications.
http://www.thejournal.ie/vaginal-mesh-complications-4235278-Sep2018/
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Mesh campaigners welcome Government ban but say the fight goes on
Sep 16, 2018 | The Sunday Post
By Marion Scott
The women who first gave a voice to Scotland’s mesh victims yesterday welcomed a ban announced by Holyrood ministers last week.
But the two courageous campaigners said their fight to halt the use of all plastic surgical mesh – which continues to be used on both men and women – will continue.
Health Secretary Jeane Freeman last week said NHS boards have been told to stop using vaginal mesh in cases of pelvic organ prolapse and stress urinary incontinence but other types of mesh procedures will continue.
Elaine Holmes, who launched the Hear Our Voice campaign six years ago, said: “Although this is a phenomenal victory for patient power, it’s sad it took so long for the Government to listen.
“It concerns us mesh procedures are still being carried out, and we will continue our campaign until mesh is no longer used.”
She said the “endemic reluctance” by doctors to listen to patients had prolonged the use of mesh and put more patients at risk.
Her campaign colleague Olive McIlroy said: “We believe we’re still only just seeing the tip of the iceberg, and fear many more victims will be identified before this scandal is over.
“Amongst our numbers are many suffering terrible injuries from hernia mesh, which is made of the same substance as bladder and pelvic organ mesh.
“We must never forget brave Michele McDougall whose dying wish was to prevent others suffering before she passed away in May after years of denial from surgeons that hernia mesh was to blame for her agony.
“Marion McMillan from Paisley is dying from cancer.
She was sent to a psychiatrist because doctors said her problems were ‘all in her head’ instead of being sent for the scan that could have saved her life.
“Right now, many are fighting to get funding to access specialist surgeons in England who are most experienced at removing mesh.
“We should have access to those services here.
“But specialists in Scotland refuse to use translabial ultra-sound scanners, the only method that can accurately show where mesh is inside the body.”
Urogynaecologist Wael Agur said: “It is essential that the Scottish Government continues to monitor the use of these devices as there are surgeons who still believe they are the best treatment for incontinence and may try to circumvent the restriction programme that limits the use for these devices.
“As for the abdominal placement of mesh procedures, there are lessons yet to be learnt.
“The risks associated with all these procedures are avoidable and until such risks can be mitigated, I believe these procedures should either be included in the recent Government action or at least undergo a similar restriction program to the one proposed.”
Labour’s Neil Findlay describes mesh as a “grotesque and deadly product”, and said last week’s decision was “the Government’s first positive step forward in this dreadful scandal”.
He is “appalled” two of Scotland’s biggest health authorities NHS Glasgow and NHS Lothian continued to implant a further 750 women after the 2014 suspension.
He said: “This procedure was brought in as a way to save money, £200 per patient.
“Nobody considered the human cost in devastated lives or the huge cost to the NHS treating those women who have been injured.”‘We have listened and we have acted. I hope this reassures all these brave women’
By Health Secretary Jeane Freeman
No-one can fail to have been moved by the stories of women who live each day with pain caused by mesh implants.
Women like Olive McIlroy and Elaine Holmes have bravely brought this issue to the top of the agenda at Holyrood and beyond. And I am grateful to them for that.
Since being appointed Health Secretary this summer I have listened carefully to the experiences of women – including those helped by mesh when there was no other viable treatment.
With the support of Chief Medical Officer Dr Catherine Calderwood I have examined the evidence – mindful that only the UK-wide MHRA or the UK Government can ban a medical device outright.
A suspension on the routine use of mesh since 2014 has significantly reduced the number of procedures being carried out but we need to go further.
So this week we instructed a complete halt pending the introduction of a high-vigilance “restricted use” protocol – an effective ban on transvaginal mesh for pelvic organ prolapse and stress urinary incontinence.
The ban will stay in place until I am satisfied this protocol is robust enough to ensure such procedures could only occur in the most limited circumstances – and with true, informed consent.
The only exception is the small number of women awaiting arranged procedures, whose operations will go ahead only if it is the woman’s informed and expressed wish.
This halt will also give us time to take account of new guidance from NICE on stress urinary incontinence and pelvic organ prolapse, expected in April 2019.
Should the halt be lifted, the medical director on each board will consider every case based on clinical evidence and patient consent, and be the officer to approve use. Even in these circumstances, procedures would only take place in a small number of centres of expertise.
Other kinds of mesh implants will be kept under review and subjected to high-vigilance measures. I hope this decision and these additional measures will reassure the women who have tirelessly campaigned that we have listened and, within the limits of our powers, acted.
https://www.sundaypost.com/fp/mesh-campaigners-welcome-government-ban-but-say-the-fight-goes-onit-is-a-great-start-health-secretary-but-is-not-the-end/
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PM honours unsung heroes at Health Hero Awards
Sep 16, 2018 | Infosurhoy
By Marta Subat
Theresa May last night paid tribute to the unsung health heroes who ‘epitomise the very best of the NHS’.
Presenting the Daily Mail’s Health Hero Awards, she praised the nominees for their ‘care, compassion and dedication’.
Speaking before a ceremony in central London, the Prime Minister said: ‘You are there for us when we need you most. Tonight we are here for you.
‘What unites you is your commitment, willingness to go the extra mile, your dedication. And that is true not just of you but all those people working in the National Health Service.’
Five finalists were shortlisted – a GP, a hospital cleaner, a volunteer on a dementia ward, a nurse and a surgeon. The award went to surgeon Sohier Elneil, a gynaecologist at University College London Hospital who was nominated for her role uncovering the vaginal mesh scandal.
‘Tonight we say thank you to a surgeon whose remarkable empathy and determination is not only transforming the lives of her own patients but improving care for others too,’ Mrs May said.
Miss Elneil raised the alarm about vaginal mesh more than a decade ago when a patient was referred to her complaining of crippling pelvic pain.
She investigated and found plastic mesh used to help with urinary incontinence had disintegrated. After complex surgery to remove it, the patient was able to return to normal life.
Miss Elneil helped pioneer a procedure to safely remove vaginal mesh and dedicated her career to raising the alarm about the dangerous treatment despite the resistance of her profession.
The Government last year suspended the use of the mesh, which has been given to an estimated 100,000 women.
Mrs May congratulated Miss Elneil, saying: ‘You have shown the importance of championing the voice of patients. You have helped change the way in which mesh is used. You’ve made a real difference to people’s lives – you are truly a health hero.’
Miss Elneil, who won a £5,000 luxury holiday, said of her award: ‘I’m trying not to break down. It’s just amazing. The team will feel so validated.’
The Prime Minister also thanked the Daily Mail for launching the Health Hero Awards.
http://infosurhoy.com/cocoon/saii/xhtml/en_GB/science/pm-honours-unsung-heroes-at-health-hero-awards/
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Helen Martin: Spend tourist tax revenue on us, not the tourists
Sep 17, 2018 | Edinburgh Evening News
By Helen Martin
The possible introduction of tourism tax may not be quite as controversial as the creation of a tram system was in Edinburgh (and still is now that we’re on the brink of an extension).
But an extra £1 a night charge for accommodation is certainly a hot issue beset by disagreement between the government, the council, political parties and, needless to say, the tourist industry.
Now we know that 92 per cent of visitors don’t see any problem with stumping up £1 a night, those who still argue against it seem to be putting up nonsensical tribal tantrums. There is no risk of the tax damaging the tourist industry and income.
It certainly doesn’t stop us from holidaying in the rest of Europe where such tax is the norm, so why would it cut the level of tourists coming here?
We have architecture, a palace, a castle, history, a parliament, a beach, a zoo, galleries, museums, botanical gardens, a broad range of restaurants from cheap take-aways to fine dining, and a plethora of entertainment, culture, concerts and public celebrations.
According to meteorological predictions, we might also be destined for hot summers.
What we don’t have is the money to cope with the extra costs of accommodating such a high volume of visitors . . . a thriving industry but one from which most of us don’t get a penny, and which can adversely affect our day to day life in peak season.
While the government, the council, political parties and the industry are all keen to put forward their own for and against arguments, none of them seem to realise that the most important opinion is that of Edinburgh citizens and rate-payers.
And that is particularly crucial when it comes to deciding how the revenue that comes in from a potential tourist tax is spent.
The industry, including Marketing Edinburgh, says the money should go towards further investment in tourism to increase numbers and to help the council pay the extra costs incurred by intense over-crowding in the city. That is confirming the fear of 13 per cent of residents who felt locals would not benefit from the money or that it would not be wisely spent.
Personally, I believe that percentage is much higher. Instead of addressing desperate structural and welfare shortages and lack of benefits we suffer from the council budget, the very idea of a tourism tax being spent on boosting tourism is crazy. Why aren’t those who commercially gain from tourism responsible for paying the costs of it?
We blunder and crunch over pot-holes and protruding metal covers in our roads; charges for waste collection are already at the thin end of the wedge, we are woefully short of people, systems and social work when it comes to care of the elderly, and extra “taxes” on us, the residents, continue to rise whether it’s via parking fees, garden refuse, council tax or anything else.
At this point in the council’s economic failure, any new source of income must be spent on local people and their needs and doing everything possible to reduce or reverse cut-backs. Otherwise the council and the government are serving themselves, their egos, and their pompous “business” ideas.
They are not listening to and serving the people they are elected and paid to represent.
Cashless society comes at a cost
With nearly one ATM disappearing every day in Scotland leaving us less than 6000, small villages and towns are suffering. And eventually that means many small shops and businesses in Edinburgh are also at risk.
As in more remote communities, we also have shops who can only deal in cash. Today they survive because, perhaps just a short walk away, customers can use a cash-point.
Card payment companies and the issue of card processors impose significant charges on traders. And if we reach the stage where all customers have to pay by card, it’s predicted that these companies will up their take from shopkeepers putting several out of business. Along with bank branch closures, we’re in trouble. Cash is worth money.
Total mesh ban not that simple
Many years ago, I had a mesh implant. It needed adjustment over a decade later. Now there’s a ban on transvaginal mesh implants, but not on others such as transabdominals despite that being listed as a cause of death for 75-year-old Eileen Baxter from Loanhead.
One problem now is that campaigners are calling for a total ban on mesh products. It’s not that simple.
My recent breast cancer op and initial step to reconstruction also involved a synthetic mesh support . . . a fine and strong but almost weightless, floaty type involving titanium.
Mesh isn’t the problem. It is the type of mesh, the material involved. So “mesh” isn’t necessarily evil. Anyone offered such an implant as part of treatment shouldn’t scream in horror before their surgeon explains the detail.
Cage and starve Staffie abusers TWO emaciated Staffie dogs were abandoned by a man on the south side of the city on August 23, then fortunately cared for by the SSPCA.
Ten days later, police in West Lothian found an abandoned male Staffie-cross in Bathgate, emaciated, with cuts and untreated abscesses and barely able to walk.
He had to be put down. The responsible humans – if found - could be banned from keeping animals. I’d have them caged and starved in prison.
https://www.edinburghnews.scotsman.com/news/opinion/helen-martin-spend-tourist-tax-revenue-on-us-not-the-tourists-1-4799623
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