TVTMesh-Please help us find answers to Mums death
Donation protected
My mum passed away on Wednesday, 9th of November, in the early hours of the morning unexpectedly and suddenly at just 60 years old. Mum was taken into hospital with suspected Sepsis within 30 minutes she was dead. All we know at this time is that she had a bowel obstruction, which has not been identified. This caused her to aspirate on faecal vomit.
OUR AIM
We are aiming to raise funds to get an independent post-mortem in order to find answers to the questions my mum and many other sufferers of mesh asked, whose health and quality of life drastically declined following the mesh implant.
MUMS STORY
In 2013 my mum went through a procedure to cure her urinary incontinence which involved the implant of TVT polypropylene mesh to secure her bladder. Throughout the last 9 years of her life, since this procedure my mum has suffered awfully. The procedure that was meant to cure her and ensure a good quality of life in fact did the opposite and she remained with urinary incontinence so severely she had to self-catheterise daily. She suffered immensely with other symptoms due to the implant such as constant urinary tract infections, chronic fatigue, neuro muscular issues as a result of nerve damage, bowel problems, bloody vaginal discharge after a full hysterectomy years before and severe depression as mum felt truly helpless after her chronic pains were dismissed as fibromyalgia.
She was trying so desperately to fight this and through the support of other women, also fighting the same battle, was in correspondence with doctors to get her mesh removed. Mum was convinced this mesh would be detrimental to her but was refused removal due to her weight which she couldn't shift due to the deterioration of her mobility following this operation. Aside from this, only a handful of surgeons will attempt this surgery as full removal of the mesh is practically impossible as it integrates into the flesh. She felt doomed as she had to live every day knowing that the mesh was causing her misery but was unable to act.
The cover photo we chose of mum shows her minutes before sliding down the stairs with the grandkids on mattresses, full of energy and perfectly able. None of her health issues were prevalent prior to this operation and after hearing the stories of other women going through this, we are now aware of the extent of damage and impact it had on her life.
One of the companies who provided these mesh slings in 2012, unbeknown to my mum at the time of her operation in 2013, admitted that they knew the severe complications that these could have and still nothing was done to stop the implantation of them. Mesh has been proven to shrink, twist cut through and erode into the organs of those it is fitted in. There are thousands of other sufferers of mesh who live a diminished quality of life because of this device and an increasing number of women who have died due to mesh erosion complications.
Please help us carry on this fight, mum needs to be heard and the other people who face these issues deserve to know the answers.
Any donation will be a huge step towards helping us find answers for mum and raise awareness for others battling with the impacts of mesh.
Mums fight in her own words:
"The future of keeping the mesh is scary, but so is removal and it is getting harder to find a proficient surgeon on the NHS. Totally scared and I don't know what to do having read about vaginas being ripped out and mutilated in attempt to remove the mesh."
"I love you Laura and it all scares me but it is not my imagination. I have stayed away from support groups etc trying to convince myself it will just sort itself out but I know from my own experience that it wont. It's scary and frustrating"
"I feel like a rabbit caught in headlights. Added to that lots of different pain and sight problems, trouble speaking coherently it can be a bit of a nightmare. Do have more really good times such as now and have to make most of those times."
"Deffo sleep problems and Chronic Fatigue can be symptoms. Numbness of fingers or legs, pins and needles all part too. I don't properly know what Fibromyalgia is but do believe there is a proper link to show that some of the mesh used as bladder sling with metal fixings into hips and some mesh used for hernias or bowel fixing etc is what triggers start of long lonely journey it is not until you see programs and hear of other people sharing similar experience that you realise you are not alone or going mad or imagining these things."
" Our bodies try to reject it as foreign body and as a result are more susceptible to other illnesses. Mesh used internally is extremely hard to remove as often our body has grown over it and then mesh is buried, twisted and maybe broken up inside. Bit of a nightmare to say least and mesh has been known to perforated bowel or bladder or to come through vaginal wall and damage partner when having sex, that's if of course you can even attempt or feel inclined to have intercourse."
"Often removal is only partial and then other ops needed to remove rust of mesh and quite often they are unable to remove fixings at same time, if at all. It's scary business really and I have to be pushy to get appointments."
If anyone wishes to contact us, please contact Lucy Cook on Facebook.
Fundraising team (3)
Lucy Cook
Organizer
England
Laura McCormick
Team member
Chloe Cook
Team member
