Episode Guide
Episode 3 - Brighton
Friday 19th February 2010, 9pm on Channel 4
First up was Janice who came to the clinic about her breasts. Janice had a mastectomy and subsequent breast reconstruction in 1996 as part of her fight against breast cancer. At the time Janice opted out of having a new nipple constructed as it would have been made using tissue from her vulva or anus. Furthermore the reconstructive surgery left Janice’s breasts particularly assymetric. After discussion with Dr Christian she decided to under go further surgery to correct the asymmetry with new implants, as well as having a new nipple constructed out of her breast tissue. The process was completed with a tattooist applying colour to the nipple area to create an areola. To hear more about Janice’s story you can go to her website.
To see Janice’s operation in more detail, watch our extended video guide
38 year old Robert had been suffering for 10 years with ulcers in his mouth and on his penis that lasted for several months. Dr Dawn swabbed for the herpes virus but the results were negative so, suspecting Behcet’s Syndrome (a rare auto-immune condition), sent him to see consultant rheumatologist Dr Alison Jordan who confirms the presence of the genetic condition. Returning to Dr Dawn, Robert tells of how the ulcers completely cleared up after a course of prescribed medication.
This episode saw the mobile clinic land slap bang in Brighton. First through its doors was David with his dry, itchy, cracked, bleeding hands. After discussing David’s occupation as a chef and his frequent contact with anti-bacterial soap Dr Christian diagnoses contact dermatitis stemming from an allergic reaction. Dr Christian suggests ditching the current soap to see if that improves things and if not to apply steroid creams at night as well as putting gloves on to prevent scratching and wiping the cream off.
Next up Dr Pixie met Laila who, having recently has a case of constipation, was subsequently experiencing bleeding whenever she moved her bowels. On examination Dr Pixie notices a small tear in the anus sometimes known as an anal fissure, which should heal within a couple of weeks. If a tear doesn’t heal within that time, consult your GP for a checkup.
Dr Christian met Chris who having suffered from tonsillitis frequently in his twenties was still experiencing smelly, swollen, pus filled tonsils that were constantly getting trapped with food. On inspection Christian notices a large hole in the tonsils and suggests consulting an ear, nose and throat specialist to discuss the possibility of tonsil removal.
Back at the clinic Lois dropped in with a severe case of thrush that had been persisting despite various treatments, for nine long years. Dr Christian took some swabs of the discharge that Lois was consistently experiencing to send off for tests. The swabs were analysed by microbiologist Val Edwards-Jones, who found no signs of the regular thrush yeast so Lois was sent to see consultant dermatologist Dr Jennifer Yell. Dr Yell found signs of eczema and recommended a cream to apply twice a day as well as substituting soap for Aqueous cream. Three weeks later Lois returns to tell Dr Christian of the vast improvement in her symptoms.
After asking women to discuss their vagina hygiene habits Dr Christian raised awareness of good vaginal health and tackled some of the more common myths regarding the female genitals – they’re self cleaning for starters so excessive ‘douching’ can upset the balance of your most delicate areas!
24 year old Paul was next to see Dr Pixie who had never developed pectoral muscles on the right hand side of his body, leaving him with a peculiar chest appearance. Dr Pixie diagnoses Poland’s Syndrome a rare condition more commonly affecting males. The main symptoms of the condition are purely cosmetic so Paul goes to see cosmetic surgeon Dr Yannis Alexandrides. After discussion with Dr Alexandrides Paul opted for a temporary but less invasive solution to surgery which involved injecting a cosmetic filler into the affected side of the chest to give the illusion of chest muscle. After the swelling had gone down Paul returned to Dr Pixie to show off his newly acquired pec.
To see Paul’s operation in more detail watch our exclusive extended guide >
The doctors headed back to Brighton where Dr Pixie was out to relieve some party animals of their dreaded hangovers whilst raising awareness of the guidelines for alcohol consumption. In an attempt to uncover what actually goes on in our brains when under the influence Dr Pixie took part in an experiment with neurologist Dr David Lewis. As she drank six units of vodka Dr Pixie’s brain activity was monitored which revealed notable, reduced functionality in her brain causing her to rethink some of her past assumptions about the effects of alcohol.
This weeks ‘Living With…’ strand followed a young sufferer of Parkinson’s Disease – a disorder of the central nervous system characterised by shaking, stiffness and difficulty with co-ordination, walking and movement. Whilst Parkinson’s isn’t fatal it does get worse over time and can affect the whole body. Despite all this she manages to live a normal, happy life.
The EB Team would also like to thank:
Yannis Alexandrides
Mind Lab International
Queen Elizabeth Hospital, Birmingham
Matt Benucci Ice Cream
The Coalition Bar
RDF Bar
Cadogan Clinic
Mr Jian Farhardi
Didymafoundation
CancerActive
Getting it Off My Chest
Spire Healthcare, Cheshire
Mind
Time To Change
Young Minds
Kelly Forshaw – Medical Tattoist
Brighton and Hove City Council
Channel 4 is not responsible for the contents of external websites
Comments and Questions
You can share your experiences and thoughts with other Embarrassing Bodies site-users below. Comments & Questions are reviewed by moderators, but if you see anything on the site that worries you, please report it and one of our moderators will look at it as soon as possible.
Please note: Unfortunately Channel 4 cannot respond to individual inquiries. If you have any concerns, you can check out NHS Choices, but ultimately it is always best to check with a health professional.
My wife has had a sore on the side of her nose, just in the groove between the face and her nose. It is scabbed over but is not healing. She has had it for about six years but just puts cream on it. It never gets any worse or better. She won't go to the doctors for anything and I was wondering if you knew of a cream that may help. I have had sores in a similar location myself due to getting rid of spots which go deep, but mine healed up.It did take a few months to heal but has at least now dissappeared.
hi i am 13 and i think i have swelling in my vagina. Is is normal to have, like the bit where it opens the two lines beside it opening a hole, one of them is bigger than the other. I do not know what to do and i don't want to show anyone as it is embarrassing. But can you help me?
I have had vaginal eczema all my life, nothing seems to help for long, please can you tell me what cream was suggested for vaginal eczema? On episode 3 Dr Yell/Dr Christian scenario , as I missed it. Many Thanks
Hello,i am 16 years old and my right breast hasnt grown at all.my left has developed and my right one hasnt its really horrible trying to find fitting bras and its embarassing as it affects what clothes i buy please tell me what it is and how to correct it? please help!
hi, i have really dry skin and it turns darker than the rest of my skin and when i went to the doctor she said to just use baby oil and dove and it will disappear, but it has not what do i do or use?
im 15 and recently noticed a lump in my vagina and im worried if it could be some sort of cancer or its just swallon for some reason and a few days ago i had a little bit of blood coming out when i wiped myself after going toilet
Hi, Foolishly i went to a military surgeon to have a tattoo removed (young and daft)He made a right mess of removing the tattoo from my upper arm, and worse he took the graft off my upper right leg,(4" by 8") do you have any solutions how to hide or cover the scar, I have tried camoflauge cream but not very good?
Hi, since having my son in 2005 I have suffered with bladder weakness. I have to wear towels everyday and I find it very embarrasing because sometime I know I smell. When I do exercise for example running I can feel myself leaking laods. Can you help please as my doctors don't seem to want to?
As others have posted, I too have problems with "tonsil stones," i.e. food which gets stuck in my scarred and pitted tonsils which festers and becomes putrid. Causing bad breath and terrible self consciousness. I was very disappointed to see the Series 3 Episode 3 referred to the symptoms but didn't follow up the cause or solution later in the show. Please can you tell me if this is going to be addressed in a later show? If not what is the point of showing the complaint in the first place. I hope the show takes this complaint seriously. I know from my own condition that it "rules my life" with regard to how close I get to others, constantly concerned my putrid breath will cause offence. My own doctor doesn't take the complaint seriously telling me there is nothing wrong with me and that scarred tonsils are normal.
I agree with you. I watched that episode twice in case I missed the update first time. Was very disappointed it didn't show how the man with the problem got on. As I too have that problem.
Hi. This doesn't relate to this weeks show but I have a problem that I'm curious to know what it is. I have noticed for the past 4 or 5 years (on and off), my belly button sometimes gets this horrible stinky yellow substance forming inside it, which turns crusty. It isn't painful and it doesn't go onto my clothes. The smell is the main problem. What is it and how can I treat it?
