Bucks swallowable gastric balloon patient says availability through NHS is 'amazing'
The first patients administered with the procedure through the NHS received treatment as early as yesterday
Last updated 24th Jan 2024
NHS patients across the country are beginning to receive a weight-loss pill aimed at mimicking the feeling of satiation in the stomach.
It's in an effort to reduce the number of patients suffering from obesity and dangerous weight gain.
The pill is swallowed by the patient and connected by a tube, which is later filled with water to blow a balloon up into the stomach, until it reaches the size of a grapefruit.
The tube is then cut off and removed, leaving a balloon in the patient's stomach for four months until it naturally dissolves and is ejected by the body.
"...you carry on your journey after so in terms of weight loss I lost two stones in the four months, and then I went on to lose another stone after that..."
During the procedure, the patient will be adapting their diet with the help of health professionals, which can help reduce weight gain in the long term, after the balloon is fully dissolved.
Charley Payne, 26-year-old from Milton Keynes who paid for the procedure last year, said: "Four months it lasted for, and then you carry on your journey after so in terms of weight loss I lost two stones in the four months, and then I went on to lose another stone after that and I've been about nine months without the balloon now."
The treatment itself is quick and easy, lasting only 15 minutes, and is approved by the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (Nice).
It requires no surgery, endoscopy or anaesthesia.
"In terms of obesity it's costing the NHS so much money so anywhere where we can try and reduce that as a preventative measure is amazing."
An X-ray then confirms the correct placement in the stomach, before 550ml of water is put into the balloon via the tube, and if all has gone well the patient is immediately dismissed after a second X-ray.
Ms Payne said: "It wasn't a cheap procedure, it cost me £4000, so for this to be made available to more people would be amazing."
"In terms of obesity it's costing the NHS so much money so anywhere where we can try and reduce that as a preventative measure is amazing."
Allurion, the company behind the pill, said it has been in talks with the NHS to roll out the treatment since it was approved in 2020.
"People with severe obesity are prone to diseases, such as type 2 diabetes, which can be reversed with weight loss."
The first two NHS patients to have received an Allurion gastric balloon procedure were treated at Musgrove Park Hospital, part of Somerset NHS Foundation Trust.
Professor Richard Welbourn, consultant bariatric surgeon at Somerset NHS Foundation Trust, said: "We are very pleased to be able to offer this new treatment, a first for the NHS, that offers clinically meaningful weight loss as part of a holistic programme involving dietary support and care.
"People with severe obesity are prone to diseases, such as type 2 diabetes, which can be reversed with weight loss."
Data suggests the device helps patients lose an average of 10-15% of their body weight after only 16 weeks.