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Patient support groups

Sling The Mesh Northern Ireland

Mesh Rectopexy Support and Action Group UK

Scottish Mesh Survivors

Scottish Global Mesh Alliance Facebook Group

Mesh Survivors Ireland Facebook Group

Mesh Medical Device News Desk (US)

Mesh Me Not (US)

Mesh Down Under (New Zealand)

Australian Mesh Injured Support Group

Surgical Mesh Complication Information (Canada)

Mesh Slings South Africa Facebook Group

Other groups

Chronic Urinary Tract Infection Campaign

Pelvic Roar

Patient Safety Learning – mesh news

Bio Hernia (Europe)

Shouldice Hospital for non-mesh hernia repairs (Canada)

Transparimed campaigning for clinical trial transparency

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slingthemesh

Mesh implants are used in operations to treat incontinence, prolapse, hernia, rectopexy and some mastectomy repairs after breast cancer.

☀️What is Sunshine Legislation and why do we need ☀️What is Sunshine Legislation and why do we need it now? 

📚Patients have a right to know about financial relationships between doctors and the pharmaceutical and medical device industries.

💰Also, patients and the wider public / media / MPs / regulators have a right to know how much money is being given to researchers, hospitals, health charities, surgeon societies and political lobby groups.

💡For years, transparency has relied on voluntary disclosure. But voluntary systems leave gaps, and patients deserve better.

🔖The good news? Progress is being made. Following four workshops with the Department of Health and Social Care which #slingthemesh attended, proposals are being developed for the new Health Secretary Yvette Cooper to improve transparency around industry payments in healthcare.

🔖Now we need your help.

🔖 Baroness Cumberlege's landmark #firstdonoharm review called for mandatory transparency measures. A Sunshine-style law would help ensure payments are openly declared, creating a system that is more transparent, accountable, and trustworthy for everyone.

📧 Please email your MP and ask them to write to Health Secretary Yvette Cooper in support of mandatory Sunshine-style legislation. The more MPs who raise this issue, the harder it becomes to ignore.

🔎Transparency builds trust. Patients deserve transparency. Let's make it happen.

#SunshineLegislation #PatientSafety #HealthcareTransparency #MedTech #Pharma #Transparency #Healthcare #PatientVoice #CumberlegeReview #UKPolitics

@joeroganexperience 

C
🚨 £929 MILLION was given from pharmaceutical compa 🚨 £929 MILLION was given from pharmaceutical companies to the UK health sector in 2025. Let that sink in. 
Nearly £1 BILLION.

🔍 But here's what most people don't know...

💰 More than 70% of that (£647m) was reported as "research funding" in one giant lump sum. 

❓That means the public can't see exactly who received the money, how much they got, or where it went. How is that transparency?

⚠️ The Association of British Pharmaceutical Industries continues to resist full disclosure of individual research payments, preventing the level of transparency that patients deserve.

And it gets worse...

🩺 Pharmaceutical companies must disclose some payments.

🚫 Medical device manufacturers don't have to.

Companies making devices such as #PelvicMesh #HerniaMesh #BreastMesh are not subject to an equivalent public disclosure system.

Patients are told to trust the system.

But how can there be trust without transparency?

Follow the money. Ask the questions. Demand accountability.

#slingthemesh #patietnsafety #firstdonoharm #mesh #pelvicmesh
❤️💙Interview with Kath Sansom on Sky News about th ❤️💙Interview with Kath Sansom on Sky News about the urgent need for compensation for women avoidably harmed by #pelvicmesh and #sodiumvalproate

We trusted our doctors, yet the majority of us were never warned of the life changing and irreversible risks.

Women have lost jobs, pensions, savings, marriages, hobbies, quality of life and their sense of self.

We deserve accountability and justice.

#PelvicMesh #SodiumValproate #PatientSafety #CompensationNow #Firstdonoharm
🔖We are grateful to the BMJ for covering the story 🔖We are grateful to the BMJ for covering the story of how 6 years on from the Cumberlege Review, and over a decade of advocacy from #slingthemesh and we’re still waiting for meaningful action on transparency around pharma and device payments to the health sector.

💰Industry payments reached £540 million in the UK in 2025 from the pharmaceutical industry alone - declared voluntarily. That's a lot of money.

📑Around 70% of that was research payments. 

😱 We have no idea how much from the medical device sector for things such as surgical mesh as there is no logging.

Baroness Cumberlege called for improved transparency as a key recommendation yet a recent series of government workshops led to no commitment to making it the law for payments to be reported.

More worryingly there was heavy pushback from pharma (ABPI) who do NOT TO WISH TO DISCLOSE research payments.

Do not be fooled. This money is not philanthropic funding. It can be clever marketing / key opinion leader funding and was a key issue underpinning the #pelvicmesh scandal.

Transparency shouldn’t be controversial. It’s fundamental to trust in healthcare. Patients, journalists and politicians have a right to know about financial relationships that can influence treatment decisions.

To read the BMJ article head to the blog sesction of our website.

#conflictsofinterest #trustinhealthcare #patientsafety #firstdonoharm
❤️💙Thanks to everyone who got involved in our rece ❤️💙Thanks to everyone who got involved in our recent MP email rally about compensation for women avoidably harmed by #pelvicmesh and #sodiumvalproate

We are grateful to the many MPs who are now receiving replies from Preet Gill MP Parliamentary Under Secretary of State for Health Innovation and Safety, who will soon be meeting with Patient Safety Commissioner Henrietta Hughes to discuss redress.

Thousands of mesh injured women have had their physical, mental and financial health cruelly stripped from them. Many have lost jobs, hobbies, relationships and their sense of self.

After years of delay, the Government must provide the redress, support and justice these women deserve.

#patientsafety #redressnow firstdonohar
😱 It's devastating to see #breastmesh being aggres 😱 It's devastating to see #breastmesh being aggressively marketed globally for #breastcancer patients and in cosmetic surgery. 💰A recent market insight report shows breast mesh is estimated to be worth $840 million by 2030. It is clear to see there are huge profits up for grabs.

We already know what comes next ... women being gaslit and told their pain has nothing to do with the mesh.

⬇️ Below is the experience of a member of our support group suffering complications from breast mesh used in her post #mastectomy reconstruction - she had a lightbulb moment on finding us and realised she wasn't going mad.

🔖💬Linda writes - I had breast cancer and later found out that mesh had been used in my reconstruction in 2017. Im still suffering with mesh issues and still arguing with surgeons and GPs regarding this.

Sling The Mesh literally saved me from going insane and saved me from deep depression after all the gaslighting they fed me and the famous line of "Im the ONLY ONE" to complain about mesh - the poison they put inside me WITHOUT MY CONSENT 🤬 It's been nearly 10yrs with mesh now and I still get so angry over it. The denial and gaslighting made my cancer battle 100 times worse than it already was.

Please share to raise awareness of the dangers of breast mesh.

@mumsnet

#womenshealth #mesh #patientsafety
💙❤️We are grateful to Andy Burnham in his first sp 💙❤️We are grateful to Andy Burnham in his first speech to Parliament for recognising the fight for justice by too many campaigners - including the years of advocacy by women's campaigners on Mesh, Primodos, Sodium Valproate and PIP implants. 

Burnham spoke about our campaigns during his speech about Hillsborough Law where he said the law would be :

➡️ A "rewiring of the state", shifting power from public authorities to ordinary people.

➡️ Families affected by tragedies have too often been re-traumatised by the behaviour of the state after the original event.

The bill would put "decency back at the heart of the British state" through a legal duty of candour on public officials.

➡️ Parliament was "rebalancing the scales of justice" and called the legislation a major change in how Britain handles accountability.

#hillsboroughlaw #pelvicmesh #primodos #sodiumvalproate #patientsafety #firstdonoharm
🚨 Compensation for women harmed by pelvic mesh and 🚨 Compensation for women harmed by pelvic mesh and sodium valproate featured on Sky News.

Patient Safety Commissioner Professor Henrietta Hughes has given the Government a deadline of 16 July to make a firm commitment on whether it will provide compensation for women avoidably harmed.

The case for compensation was clearly set out in both the 2024 Hughes Report and the 2020 First Do No Harm Report. Women have waited far too long for justice, accountability and the support they deserve.

📢 It's time for action, not more delays. 

#slingthemesh #henriettahughes #firstdonoharm
❤️💙 Our deepest condolences are with the family an ❤️💙 Our deepest condolences are with the family and friends of former Senator Derryn Hinch - the first Australian politician to take mesh injured women seriously and a passionate advocate for the Mesh injured community globally.

📢 Derryn described transvaginal mesh as one of the biggest medical scandals and used his platform and the courage of his convictions to expose a scandal that many preferred to ignore.

Known as the "Human Headline," Derryn was a fearless journalist, a political champion for justice, and a true hero to global mesh injured patients. 

At a time when the surgical mesh scandal received little attention Derryn was the first Australian Senator to speak out on what was then considered a taboo health issue. 

📢 He listened to women, believed their stories, and used his voice to ensure they were heard. 

His advocacy drove the Australian Senate Inquiry into mesh - which #slingthemesh gave evidence to in 2018.

He stood alongside us all with compassion, determination, and integrity, supporting the fight for recognition, accountability, and change. 

He was also a tremendous supporter of #SlingTheMesh helping us raise awareness of the harms. His encouragement and advocacy made a real difference. 

Derryn's kindness, courage, unwavering support, and commitment to speaking truth to power will never be forgotten. 🌟

He will be greatly missed by the mesh community, the countless women whose voices he helped amplify, and everyone whose lives he touched. 

💪His legacy will live on in every woman who finally found her voice because he helped make people listen.

Thank you, Derryn. Rest in peace. 

 #SlingTheMesh #DerrynHinch HumanHeadline
💙❤️ As we approach the 8th anniversary of the UK b 💙❤️ As we approach the 8th anniversary of the UK bladder mesh sling suspension our latest blog looks at how thousands of women have been spared from mesh harm. 

From more than 10,500 women implanted with a mesh sling in 2008 to just 22 in 2025/26.

Since the July 2018 suspension there's been 65 women in England who had mesh sling surgery. And while it still feels like 65 too many, compared to the previous thousands, it feels like a great deal to be thankful for.

No women in Scotland or Northern Ireland have had mesh slings since the suspension. There have been 5 women in Wales.

Take a look at the chart to see the rise and fall of mesh slings and how traditional alternative surgeries have taken the place of mesh. The chart crops some detail but you should still be able to make out the statistics and how mesh has drastically fallen.

Head to the blog section of our website to read the full story and to see the chart in full. .

#slingthemesh #mesh #sui #patientsafety #pelvichealth
We’re extremely disappointed to see Take A Break r We’re extremely disappointed to see Take A Break run an article  in its latest issue about a young woman who had prolapse mesh - and the story gives no warning of risks or complications.

Over the last 11 years of our advocacy #takeabreak has covered the Mesh scandal numerous times - it’s unacceptable that readers have not been told about any complications in its info panel. 
If you feel as disappointed as us please email the editor feedback@takeabreak .co.uk

#slingthemesh #firstdonoharm prolap
💙❤️ Opinion column in the Daily Mail recently. Wom 💙❤️ Opinion column in the Daily Mail recently. Women avoidably harmed in the mesh scandal have been treated absolutely terribly – from being told they were getting a low risk treatment to being gaslit when they try to seek help, to waiting many months or years to get the treatment and mesh removal surgery they need to try and live a better new normal.

… and it doesn’t end there. We were guinea pigs for mesh being inserted and now we’re guinea pigs for mesh being removed.

Yet still no commitment from the government to a compensation scheme that was first outlined as a key recommendation in the First Do No Harm report in 2020 and was strengthened further by the Patient Safety Commissioner in her Hughes report in 2024.

#slingthemesh #mesh #patientsafety #firstdonohsrm pelvicmesh
❤️💙 We love our #slingthemesh members - somebody i ❤️💙 We love our #slingthemesh members - somebody in the support group has just made this great image of a Sling The Mesh banner at the top of Big Ben. If only!
📢 £929 MILLION from Pharma to the UK Health Sector 📢 £929 MILLION from Pharma to the UK Health Sector in 2025! 💷💊
Did you know that hundreds of millions of pounds are paid by industry to the UK healthcare sector every year?

This money goes to:
👨‍⚕️ Doctors (including media doctors)
🔬 Researchers
🏥 Teaching hospitals
❤️ Health charities
⚕️ Surgical and medical societies

Why does this matter?
Studies have shown that industry funding can influence research outcomes, including overstating benefits and downplaying risks. We know this this was a key factor underpinning the mesh scandal.

⚠️ 💊 Industry funding can also contribute to prescribing bias where a treatment is chosen not because it is the best or most cost-effective option, but because it has been more heavily marketed.

✅ Payments from pharmaceutical companies can be checked through the UK voluntary industry transparency database called Disclosure UK.

❌ But there is no equivalent mandatory public disclosure system for medical device industry payments in the UK.

Transparency matters. Patients deserve to know about potential conflicts of interest. 🔍
⚠️Two NHS webpages significantly understate the sc ⚠️Two NHS webpages significantly understate the scale and severity of the #PelvicMesh scandal. 

➡️ One suggests that only "a few" women have been affected.

➡️ Another describes most mesh-related complications as "relatively minor."

💔 Frankly, I find this deeply concerning. For many women, the consequences of pelvic mesh implants have been life-changing, resulting in chronic pain, disability, repeated surgeries, infections, autoimmune disease, for some a stoma bag, for 7 in 10 loss of sex life and a profound impact on quality of life. 

To characterise these experiences in a way that minimises their seriousness raises important questions about how this issue is being presented. 

📢One page is published on the NHS Surgical Solutions web page for stress urinary incontinence (SUI), and the other is on the NHS Resolution vaginal mesh webpage.

🩺📣I would be very interested to hear others' views. Are these descriptions fair and accurate, or do they risk diminishing the experiences of those affected?

#PelvicMesh #PatientSafety #WomensHealth #MeshInjury #ListenToWomen #NHS #firstdonoharm #medicalmisogyny
📣 More than 100 MPs have been emailed on behalf of 📣 More than 100 MPs have been emailed on behalf of mesh‑injured members of #SlingTheMesh in a renewed push for government action on compensation.

💙❤️ Our campaign organised the email rally following a call to action from Patient Safety Commissioner Dr Henrietta Hughes, who has given the Government until July 16 to confirm whether a financial redress scheme will be created for those harmed by pelvic mesh and sodium valproate ⚖️

➡️ Dr Hughes’ 2024 report calls for a two-stage compensation scheme — but progress has been slow.

💔 Many women trusted their doctors and have paid with their health, jobs, finances, relationships, and sense of self.

#PatientSafety #Mesh #WomensHealth #Justice #firstdonoharm #SlingTheMesh
📺❤️💙 Tune into Sky News at 7.30am and 8:30am for a 📺❤️💙 Tune into Sky News at 7.30am and 8:30am for an interview with Professor Henrietta Hughes the Patient Safety Commissioner and #slingthemesh founder Kath Sansom about the urgent deadline that has been handed to the government to make a decision on compensation for women harmed by Pelvic Mesh and sodium valproate. 

You can watch Live online without having a Sky account. 

#mesh #firstdonoharm #patientsafetycommissioner #patientsafety
✒️Please email your MP asking them to support Pati ✒️Please email your MP asking them to support Patient Safety Commissioner Prof Henrietta Hughes, who has given the government a deadline of 16 July to commit to a compensation scheme for women harmed by #pelvicmesh and #sodiumvalproate

🔖Ask your MP to submit a written question to the government, and include a link to our Sling The Mesh website news section, which highlights media coverage of the Patient Safety Commissioner’s deadline and urgent call to action.

#slingthemesh #mesh #compensation #firstdonoharm #patientsafety
❤️💙 This morning, BBC Breakfast featured a powerfu ❤️💙 This morning, BBC Breakfast featured a powerful interview with mesh-injured patient @bridgemandy alongside Patient Safety Commissioner Professor Henrietta Hughes. 

❤️💙 Together, they highlighted the urgent need for the government to finally act on compensation for victims - something that was first recommended in the 2020 First Do No Harm report and reinforced again in the 2024 Hughes Report.

➡️ To see coverage from LBC, GB News, ITN and The Independent as well as the Patient Safety Commissioner's blog visit our website news section.

#slingthemesh #firstdonoharm #patientsafety #mesh #patientsafety #hughesreport
Tune into BBC Breakfast shortly to hear our wonder Tune into BBC Breakfast shortly to hear our wonderful Sling The Mesh member Mandy talk about the urgent need for the government to commit to compensation for women harmed by Pelvic Mesh. 

The story is also running on GB news in an interview with me plus various online platforms.

we are grateful to the patient safety commissioner Henrietta Hughes who has given the government a deadline of July 16 on her recommendations for financial redress. 

#slingthemesh #pelvicmesh #firstdonoha
➡️ In 2020 the First Do No Harm report called for ➡️ In 2020 the First Do No Harm report called for compensation for women harmed by #PelvicMesh

➡️ In 2024 the Patient Safety Commissioner renewed those calls.

📣 In 2026? Promises and platitudes but no action.

Women deserve better

#slingthemesh
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