Norwich woman says breast implant illness left her blind

Danielle Sheehan, 32, had implants aged 19 after winning a £5,000 beauty makeover. 

Following the surgery, she was plagued by hair loss, fatigue, eczema and inflammation and went to her doctor multiple times, before attending A&E when she lost her sight. 

Miss Sheehan, who owns a beauty clinic, now thinks she had breast implant illness (BII) as her problems vanished within weeks of her implants being removed. 

"Doctors told me they thought it was stress due to being a new mum and going through a breakup,” she said. “I stumbled across other people talking about breast implant illness and saw they had rashes around their eyes the same as mine, it was like a lightbulb moment. 

“My symptoms were all the same – I had rashes, a low mood, I felt like I was slowly dying, and I just didn’t feel well at all. 

READ MORE: Urgent warning as doctors see outbreaks of 'very infectious' disease

“Even the surgeon was shocked to see the before and after pictures following the explant – two hours after the surgery the rash on my face was gone.” 

Doctors sent her for an ultrasound to check the integrity of the implants after she saw posts online about BII. 

Despite using steroid tablets and therapy the problems persisted, so she sold her car to fund the surgery. 

Danielle Sheehan saw the problems improve when she had the implants taken out (Image: SWNS)

Miss Sheehan added: “The moment the implants came out I felt so much better. 

“I feel safe in my body now, I feel emotionally stable, the rashes around my eyes have gone and the eczema is trailing off now. 

“My hair looks better - it had got thin and was falling out. 

READ MORE: Fears a growing number of children are becoming addicted to 'legal highs'

“My priority is awareness of breast implant illness. GPs need to take it seriously and ask about implants - it should be a mandatory question for girls going in with autoimmune conditions. 

“So many girls have messaged me since seeing my video on TikTok – so many of them having come into my clinic to say they’re getting a consultation to get their implants removed.” 

Government information published in January 2020 said they did "not know if there is a link between breast implants and the reported health problems" - but did not rule it out.