The Joint Council for Cosmetic Practitioners (JCCP) and the British Association of Aesthetic Plastic Surgeons (BAAPS) are issuing a joint warning following serious concerns regarding an individual, Ms Luyen Vu, widely referred to on social media as the “bleph lady”, “Luyen”, or “Cindy” who is alleged to offer surgical cosmetic procedures in unregulated settings in the North West of England including renting rooms in aesthetic clinics.

These concerns have been raised in collaboration with Environmental Health Officers. The JCCP welcome the intervention of the local police in Darlington who, when alerted recently, acted swiftly to prevent unregulated procedures from taking place.

Durham constabulary have been approached for comment.

 

Patient Safety at Risk

Information shared with the JCCP and BAAPS indicates that procedures including upper and lower blepharoplasty, also known as eyelid surgery, facelifts and genital surgery have been promoted at significantly reduced cost and delivered outside of appropriately regulated clinical environments.

These are surgical procedures that must only be performed by suitably qualified and appropriately trained medical professionals in CQC regulated premises in England. They should be performed in a sterile environment, with appropriate emergency equipment and expertise available, appropriate anaesthetic oversight for larger procedures, and access to proper aftercare.

The organisations are concerned that:

• The practitioner’s qualifications and professional registration remain unclear
• Procedures may be taking place in non-clinical or informal premises
• Patients may not be receiving appropriate pre-operative assessment or aftercare
• Communication takes place via a third party with very late notification of where procedures will take place. This raises serious concerns about access to after care in case of emergency. For members of the public, it should also raise serious concerns about the legitimacy of the practice.

The individual concerned, often marketed online as the “bleph lady”, has been asked to provide evidence of recognised UK medical qualifications and, to date, has been unable to do so.

 

Regulatory and Enforcement Challenges

This case highlights significant challenges in the current regulatory framework.

The Care Quality Commission regulates registered healthcare providers in England but has limited powers where unregulated individuals operate outside regulated settings.

The General Medical Council maintains the register of licensed doctors. Individuals who are not registered may fall outside its immediate jurisdiction unless specific offences are identified.

JCCP and BAAPS are continuing to engage with Environmental Health teams and police forces across the North-West to support appropriate enforcement action where possible.

 

The Growing Role of Social Media

The promotion of invasive procedures via platforms such as TikTok is a growing concern.

Closed referral networks and direct messaging can enable services to be marketed and arranged with limited transparency, making it more difficult for regulators and enforcement bodies to intervene.

 

Advice to the Public

JCCP and BAAPS strongly advise members of the public to take the following precautions before undergoing any cosmetic procedure:

• Check registration: Ensure the practitioner is listed with the General Medical Council or an appropriate accredited register
• Verify qualifications: Confirm that the practitioner has recognised surgical training
• Confirm the setting: Ensure procedures are carried out in premises registered with the Care Quality Commission where required
• Ask about insurance and aftercare: Appropriate indemnity and follow-up care are essential
• Be cautious of social media advertising: Online promotion is not a guarantee of safety or competence
• Is the price too good to be true? Blepharoplasty pricing usually starts at £2000 but this individual charges £850.

 

Statements

Andrew Rankin, Acting Co-Chair of the Joint Council for Cosmetic Practitioners, said:

“Reports of  unqualified and unregulated individuals performing surgical procedures in unregulated premises is deeply concerning. In this case where the provider promotes a ‘travelling service’ with the venue details released ‘the day before’ the dangers are particularly clear. We are also concerned to see the role that some aesthetic clinic owners take to promote and to permit the use of their premises for the service. We will continue to work with all relevant authorities so that they can enforce against or prosecute such activity.”

Procedures such as blepharoplasty, facelifts or genital surgery carry inherent clinical risks and must only be undertaken by appropriately trained and qualified professionals, within settings that meet established safety and regulatory standards.

We are working closely with Environmental Health and policing partners and will continue to do so to support appropriate action, strengthen oversight, and ensure that members of the public are protected from unsafe practice.

What may seem at first to be a ‘quick fix’ can have serious and permanent consequences. We advise anyone seeking this procedure to thoroughly research their options, including the risks and who will be performing the procedure. More information can be found at https://baaps.org.uk/patients/procedures 

 

Elaine Sassoon Consultant Plastic Surgeon on BAAPS Council (reviewed by Nora Nugent Consultant Plastic Surgeon BAAPS President)

People are putting their lives at risk in cases such as these. It never ceases to amaze me that more checks are carried out on a plumber or builder than on someone who will cut and potentially maim one’s face or body.

The positive outcome of this case happened as a result of seamless cooperation between BAAPS Council, the JCCP, the environmental health officers and the police who acted very swiftly.   A member of BAAPS Council informed us with incredulity about adverts seen on TikTok from this person.  We recognised  her from a recent Channel 5 News programme (in collaboration with Save Face) that exposed this “bogus surgeon” performing high risk surgical procedures in a living room, with appointments arranged by the so called “Lip King” who was at the time on bail in connection with the death of Alice Webb who died after a liquid BBL. We reported this to the JCCP and then the EHO who in turn contacted the Darlington police on the basis that if you are not a registered medical professional these actions amount to assaults. Luyen Vu is said to have moved abroad for a few months but is expected to return.

There seems to be a lack of understanding, or caring even perhaps, that these procedures are risky. It is not a case of buying a handbag: there are consequences from poor preparation, poor surgery and poor aftercare.  A lower eyelid operation (lower blepharoplasty) can lead to blindness as a result of undetected bleeding.  Infections, deformities, chronic pain may result from these cases, and even death.  Whenever a complication occurs, it is difficult, costly and lengthy to correct. 

In terms of Luyen Vu, she says she is a surgeon from overseas and she may have able hands.  However, if she was properly qualified, she would be registered with the General Medical Council in the UK, and she would have professional insurance.  She would insist on operating in safe clean facilities.  She would not operate undercover with last minute disclosure of locations for surgery – this is not a rave!  -this is putting people’s health at risk.

Finally, this brings me a point which is important to BAAPS, which is that someone like Luyen Vu can call herself a surgeon unencumbered by checks or regulation.  Surgeons undergo extensive training, examinations, qualifications by the Royal Colleges of Surgeons and ongoing learning and CPD, appraisal and professional revalidation requirements yet anyone can call himself/herself a surgeon in the UK unlike other countries such as Australia etc.  This is also unlike “dentist, audiologist,  vet” which are protected terms. BAAPS is very passionate (with the support of BAPRAS) about protecting the title “Surgeon”, and reserving the title to people properly qualified in order to reassure patients that they are trusting their bodies to the right people and not being misled. We continue to lead the campaign toward “Surgeon” being a protected title.