140 women in England receive payout for vaginal mesh implant complications

More than 100 women who suffered traumatic complications after having vaginal mesh implants have received payouts in the first successful group claim in England.

The Guardian understands that 140 women have reached an undisclosed settlement with the manufacturers Johnson & Johnson, Bard and Boston Scientific. The total sum is expected to run into millions of pounds, although the size of the total and individual payments has not been shared.

The women claimed that the implants, used to treat stress urinary incontinence and prolapse, caused complications including chronic pain, bladder and bowel perforations, bleeding and mesh eroding through the vaginal wall. Many of the women underwent subsequent revision surgeries to remove the mesh and some continue to struggle with pain and other problems.

Lisa Lunt, a partner at Pogust Goodhead, which brought the litigation on behalf of the women said: “Women implanted with transvaginal mesh have experienced years of chronic pain and suffering. Hundreds of women were prevented from making a claim due to strict 10-year time limits that are in force from the date that the product was manufactured. It is about time that the government took action to increase the time limits.”

The implants were once widely used to treat stress urinary incontinence and prolapse. Photograph: BBC

Until 2018 the implants were widely used across the UK to treat stress urinary incontinence and prolapse, often after childbirth. However, as concerns grew about the scale of complications, their routine use was initially paused and ultimately suspended after an inquiry ordered by the government that blamed the scandal on a culture of medical misogyny.

Vaginal mesh manufacturers have previously reached much larger settlements in the US, Australia and Scotland. Until now, attempts to bring a group action in England had stalled, although there have been successful medical negligence claims against the NHS.

Kath Sansom, who leads the Sling the Mesh campaign, said she was ‘delighted’ with this first victory but that the women involved represented only a ‘tiny fraction’ of those who had suffered. Photograph: Alicia Canter/The Guardian

Kath Sansom, who has led the Sling the Mesh campaign since 2015 after suffering complications from vaginal mesh, said: “I am delighted that the industry giants have paid out money to harmed women in what is believed to be the first successful product liability group action in England.”

However, she added: “It is very difficult to know just how positive this news is without knowing how much has been awarded to women. Additionally, 140 women is only a tiny fraction of the thousands who have had their lives irreversibly changed from a product they were assured was a gold-standard fix for bladder leaks or prolapse.”

Campaigners hope that the success could open the door for more women to receive financial compensation. The latest settlement also prompted calls for a government-led compensation scheme to be created as recommended by both the Cumberlege review and a more recent report by the patient safety commissioner, which suggested initial payments of £20,000 be made to women injured by mesh implants.

“This makes financial redress from the government so important as it will be non-adversary and ensure that everyone who has been harmed has an opportunity of financial support,” she said.

The three companies, Johnson & Johnson, Bard and Boston Scientific, each confirmed that the pelvic mesh claims litigation had been resolved without admission of liability.