implant

Others are medical engineering firms, which use limbs to test products like new hip implants.

Some have devices planted in their bodies, including experimental brain implants, that will no longer be serviced or monitored.

There's growing concern over the rise in Britons seeking overseas treatments such as hair implants and dental work, often lured by lower costs and shorter waiting times.

A knee-replacement implant, used in thousands of UK operations, was known to have a concerning failure rate eight years before it was finally withdrawn, the BBC has discovered.

"I went in, got put to sleep, woke up. All better. I got four to six teeth taken out, but the big thing is I got implants put in," says Whittaker.