Katie Piper has made an extraordinary recovery in the 18 years since a horrific acid attack shattered her life, but the road back has been far from straightforward.
Now 42, the presenter, author and campaigner was just 24 when she was targeted in March 2008.
Her then-boyfriend, Daniel Lynch, ordered an accomplice, Stefan Sylvestre, to throw sulphuric acid in her face in Golders Green, North London.
The attack left Katie partially blinded, with severe and permanent scarring to her face, chest, neck, arms and hands. She has since undergone hundreds of operations, and has openly described the aftermath as a “life sentence”.
Earlier this week, MailOnline revealed that Lynch is due for a Parole Board hearing this month. The hearing could determine whether he is released early after serving his minimum 16-year term.
Katie Piper underwent 250 surgeries after acid attack
In the immediate aftermath, Katie received specialist treatment at Chelsea and Westminster Hospital.
In a six-hour operation involving eight surgeons, the damaged skin on her face was removed and replaced with a dermal substitute made from collagen and elastin.
“My face is made out of a cow!” she later explained on a podcast. She revealed that the foundation used for her skin graft was derived from bovine collagen.
In her Channel 4 documentary Katie: My Beautiful Face, she disclosed that in just the first four years following the attack she underwent 109 operations. In total, that number has now exceeded 250, and continues to rise.
Heartbreakingly, she admitted in 2017: “I will continue to need operations and therapy for life. For acid attack survivors, the aftermath is a life sentence.”
She has also spoken candidly about the emotional toll of waking from a coma and not recognising her reflection.
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