'I spent over £20k on cosmetic surgery but was left with 12cm hole that smelt like rotten egg'

A woman was "horrified" after spending more than £20,000 on to be left with a 12cm hole in her leg that "smelt like rotten egg". 31-year-old Harleigh Kamal spent years feeling insecure about the appearance of her legs, and so went for a "refresh" of her upper thighs.

Having already spent around £17,000 on procedures through the years, including a (BBL), rhinoplasty, breast augmentation and liposuction, Harleigh considers herself "no stranger" to . She booked herself in for a thighplasty to "slim down" her thighs at a clinic in for £3,500.

She flew out on August 3, 2024, for the procedure, which removes excess skin and fat from the thighs to create a more toned and shaped appearance. After three hours under the knife, Harleigh woke up in "total agony" from the surgery.

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She claimed stitches in her left thigh looked "loose" and the wound was "leaking fluid". Despite medics reassuring her that it was "totally normal", Harleigh stayed in the clinic for three extra days where she was given painkillers.

She arrived back in the UK just four days after she flew out, on August 7, and went straight to Queen Elizabeth Hospital in Birmingham to have the wound cleaned and bandaged. By that point, it had developed into a 12cm hole that smelt "like rotten egg". Harleigh says medics told her she was "lucky not to have ."

Despite multiple attempts to reach out to the Turkey clinic, Harleigh claims she hasn't heard from them since and they have not admitted any wrongdoing. Harleigh, a writer from Kidderminster, said: "I was just after a little bit of a refresh because I'd always felt insecure about my thighs.

"I'm no stranger to surgery - I've had a lot of work done abroad and I love it. I found the clinic on social media and the reviews looked great I thought I knew a good clinic when I saw one. I never go back to the same clinic for cosmetics.

"But when I woke up, I was in total agony. The inside of my upper thighs were throbbing, and I saw liquid leaking out of them. Despite the medics telling me it was normal I knew right then that something wasn't right.

"It looked like I had been bitten by a shark because the wound was so deep - I could see a black hole inside my leg. The smell of my wounds was like rotten egg. As soon as I got back to the UK, I went straight to A&E, I was terrified that I would get sepsis and die. Luckily, they treated me in the nick of time else who knows where I'd be? My story goes to show botched surgery can happen to anyone - no matter how much work you've had done."

After spending thousands of pounds in her 20s on aesthetic procedures, Harleigh was looking for something specific to target her thighs. She found a plastic surgery procedure called 'thighplasty' - which removes excess skin and fat to improve appearance, comfort, and clothing fit.

Harleigh found a private clinic on based in Turkey, and had an online consultation. Her skin removal was booked for August 3, 2024, however, on arrival Harleigh claims she was told to pay an additional £1,500 on top of the £2,000 she was originall quoted - bringing her total to £3,500.

"This should've been my first red flag, but I'd already flown out and fasted for eight hours in preparation," Harleigh explained. "They said they didn't realise how much skin they would have to remove which played with my insecurity, so I went along and paid the extra."

Three hours later, Harleigh woke up in a " of pain". She said: "I consider myself to have a high pain tolerance, but this was something else. Medics kept saying 'this is normal' but I [was] trying to get them to do something because my wounds were leaking."

Harleigh claims she was given painkillers and told "everything is normal" before she flew back to the UK just three days later. She went straight to hospital once she arrived back in the UK after her "loose" stitches had begun to smell like "rotten egg". The 12cm wound was cleaned and bandaged and Harleigh returned home the same day.

She returned to the Queen Elizabeth Hospital weekly for her wounds to be cleaned and was given bandages to ensure they didn't become infected. Now recovered, Harleigh said: "I never thought something like this couldn't happen to me because I'm so experienced with going under the knife abroad.

"I haven't heard from the clinic since. There's not much they can do which is a risk I've taken. It could've taken my life. The NHS couldn't do much for me because the wound wasn't their doing, I'm lucky it healed fine. But it doesn't stop me from wanting to get more work done in the future. I'll just make sure to really scope out the clinic."