When Sylvia Halcrow’s bra scratched her breast, she didn’t think about it.
Little did she know that it would lead to a carnivorous disease that would leave her on the verge of death.
The 53-year-old, who lives on the Shetland Islands, had to be flown to the mainland by helicopter for emergency surgery.
She spent eight days in a coma, before waking up to find part of her breast and a 15-inch scar that ran from her ribs to her arms had been removed.
Now “alive and here to tell the tale,” Harlow said, “she’s totally ditched her underwire bra ever since.”
Sylvia, from Lerwick, Shetland, had a major scare last year when her breast became infected with a flesh-eating insect.
Although she doesn’t know for sure, Sylvia believes that the underwire in her bra caused the abscess and has now opted for a different style of underwear.
“I came very close to not surviving, so I’m very grateful,” she said.
“It’s scary to think that this was caused by my bra.”
Her ordeal began in May 2022, when Ms. Harlow noticed a lump in her breast that quickly turned into a “painful abscess.”
Seeking the help of her GP, the official received painkillers and antibiotics to help her control herself.
However, a few days later and with her condition deteriorating, she rushed to the island’s only emergency department at the Gilbert Bain Hospital.
“I knew something wasn’t right and I took A&E with me, I was in a lot of pain,” he said.
‘When I walked in, the nurse looked at me and hurried me away.
‘He was totally gray in the face. It was really scary.
She said doctors ran a series of tests and gave her medication and painkillers, but her condition did not improve.
The 53-year-old official was placed in an induced coma and had to undergo two operations to remove the carnivorous insect.
Since then, Sylvia has raised £2,000 for the Lee Spark foundation, a necrotizing fasciitis charity.
“The doctors were stumped for a few days, I didn’t know what was going to happen,” he said.
Ms. Halcrow was eventually diagnosed with necrotizing fasciitis, a dangerous disease nicknamed the “flesh-eating disease.”
It occurs when bacteria, such as strep, enter the skin through a scrape or cut.
The toxins produced by these bacteria destroy the tissue they infect and cause their death. When this happens, the infection is very serious and can lead to loss of limbs or death.
Ms. Halcrow recalled how doctors gave her the terrifying news that her internal organs had begun to stop fighting the infection.
She was then rushed to Aberdeen Royal Infirmary for an emergency operation to remove the infected tissue.
“I was put into an induced coma and had two operations to remove the carnivorous insect while I was unconscious,” he said.
“Looking back, I’m actually glad I was unconscious as I think I would have been really traumatized.”
She woke up from her medically induced coma eight days later with a 15-inch scar running from her ribs to under her arm and a significant portion of her breast cut away.
But she would have to stay in the hospital for another three weeks before she was well enough to go home.
Ms Halcrow said that although she has nearly recovered, the incident has left her with more than physical scars.
“It’s hard to have that much removed from my bosom, it doesn’t always look great, especially in sundresses,” she said.
But the main thing is that I’m alive and here to tell about it.
She added that the experience led her to throw out all her old underwire bras.
Sylvia awoke from an eight-day induced coma and returned to work four months later. Since she recovered, she has had a hard time wearing certain clothes.
“I’ve completely thrown out underwire bras, although we don’t know for sure, I’m sure that’s what caused all of this,” she said.
It’s just not worth the risk.
Ms Halcrow has also raised £2,000 for the necrotizing fasciitis charity Lee Spark Foundation, in gratitude for the support she received after leaving hospital.
She told charity last year: ‘I decided to do something because the foundation was very helpful to me when I got home from the hospital.
“Medical professionals can improve your body, but only once you are home and in your own headspace do you need someone to help you understand what happened.
“It’s a horrible condition to be in and they helped me understand what had happened.”
There are around 500 cases of necrotizing fasciitis reported in the UK each year with up to around 1000 each year in the US.
The first sign is usually severe pain or loss of sensation near a recent cut or wound, out of proportion to the size of the lesion.
Other symptoms include swelling of the skin around the affected area and general flu-like symptoms such as high fever, headache and tiredness.
Effective treatment requires prompt diagnosis followed by antibiotics and surgery to remove the infected area.
It can lead to sepsis and organ failure, and on average one in five people with the disease die even after treatment.
