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From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it’s investigating the financials of Elon Musk’s pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, ‘The A Word’, which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.<\/p>\n
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Your support makes all the difference.<\/strong><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\nRead more<\/span><\/svg><\/span><\/button><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/aside>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\nW<\/span>ould you want fat from a dead body pumped into yours for a little added oomph? It\u2019s a morbid question many answered with a resounding \u201cyes\u201d when the so-called \u201czombie filler\u201d slowly emerged on the US market in 2024. Today, stateside clinics now have months-long backlogs of plump-seeking patients waiting to get their hands on vials of sterilised cadaver tissue. Read: Brazilian butt lifts (BBLs) and boob jobs are now being sourced from the morgue. <\/p>\nZombie filler \u2013 real name alloClae \u2013 was first released by manufacturer Tiger Aesthetics to a select group of doctors across the pond in 2024. When people donate their bodies to science after their death for altruistic acts like organ donation, tissue banks often collect their fat, too. Tiger Aesthetics then purchases it, screens it for diseases, sterilises and processes it, before selling it to surgeons in a little branded syringe, with the deceased\u2019s fat now resembling severely curdled cake batter. <\/p>\n
The main perk of having a dead person\u2019s fat injected into your body is a reduced recovery time. For a BBL, while the buttocks still have to heal, there will be no other areas of liposuction (where fat is taken from donor areas) to heal as well. And while a boob job or BBL would normally require general anaesthesia and days of healing time, patients can have zombie filler injected into the desired areas with local anaesthesia \u2013 on their work lunch break. It also means that slim people with no excess fat of their own to funnel into the areas where they desire curves can now get it from somewhere (or, rather, someone) else. <\/p>\n
This, in the age of Ozempic, Wegovy and Mounjaro, is big business. People have shifted the excess weight they didn\u2019t want \u2013 but now they\u2019re clambering to add a touch back in. Nora Nugent, President of the British Association of Aesthetic Plastic Surgeons, says that she is seeing increasing numbers of weight loss patients at her surgery in the UK. \u201cI wouldn\u2019t say most patients know about alloClae yet, but in the last six months or so, I\u2019ve had patients specifically ask about it when I\u2019ve talked to them about procedures like fat transfer, particularly for breast surgery. It\u2019s coming into people\u2019s awareness.\u201d <\/p>\n
Right now, alloClae is only officially available in the US. Tiger Aesthetics did not respond to requests for comment on whether they planned to expand to the UK in the future. \u201cAt the moment, it\u2019s not licensed by the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA),\u201d explains Nugent. \u201cUltimately, it will probably come to market in the UK \u2013 but it\u2019s not right now. If you\u2019re offered it, something has gone wrong.\u201d <\/p>\n
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Drop dead gorgeous? Increasing numbers of patients in the UK are asking surgeons about alloClae, aka \u2018zombie filler\u2019 (alloClae)<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\nFounder of Safety in Beauty \u2013 a UK-based support organisation for the industry \u2013 Antonia Mariconda takes this warning one step further: \u201cAny current use will be off the radar on the black market offered by a handful of questionable non-medical individuals,\u201d she says, adding there\u2019s \u201cgrowing speculation within the industry\u201d that the product and others like it will enter the UK market legitimately \u201cin the near future\u201d. <\/p>\n
Black market zombie filler is \u2013 as you might have guessed \u2013 bad news. \u201cInadequate cleaning, incorrect autoclave use, or lack of validation can lead to cross-contamination and serious infection,\u201d says Mariconda. \u201cSimilarly, if fat is not harvested and processed under strict aseptic conditions, there is a risk of bacterial contamination, reduced tissue viability, and complications such as infection, fat necrosis, or inflammatory reactions.\u201d Essentially, the fat could get lumpy and die. <\/p>\n\n
\nAny current use will be off the radar on the black market offered by a handful of questionable non-medical individuals<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<\/div>\n
Safety in Beauty founder Antonia Mariconda <\/p>\n<\/figure>\n
If you don\u2019t know where backstreet fat has come from, then you can\u2019t verify how well it\u2019s been processed or sterilised. \u201cPoor documentation and lack of traceability further increase risk by limiting the ability to respond effectively to incidents,\u201d Mariconda notes of the risk to patients. <\/p>\n
As with all new products, experts have very little idea of how zombie fat could look or feel as it ages. \u201cThe jury is still out on long-term longevity,\u201d says Nugent. \u201cIt\u2019s promising, but we don\u2019t have very long-term data on it. So, we don’t know if there could be unknown issues in 20 years\u2019 time.\u201d <\/p>\n
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Zombie filler is proving particuarly popular among weight loss jab users (Reuters)<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\nDespite its ability to be administered while you\u2019re still awake, Mariconda also warns that zombie filler shouldn\u2019t be considered in the same blase way as many see procedures like dermal fillers or Botox. \u201cOne of the key concerns we\u2019re observing is the potential for these treatments to be positioned alongside standard injectable procedures, when in reality they require a higher level of medical expertise, clinical governance and patient consent,\u2019 she says. \u201cThere remains a lack of clear, consistent guidance around who is suitably qualified to perform such procedures \u2013 and in what setting.\u201d <\/p>\n
If and when zombie filler does make its way to the UK \u2013 shuffling like a character from The Walking Dead<\/em>, no doubt \u2013 questions linger on where exactly the fat will come from. In the US, it\u2019s collected from corpses via donor tissue banks. Should we be concerned in the UK that our immortal legacy could soon be becoming part of a stranger\u2019s boob job or BBL? \u201cIt depends on licensing,\u201d says Nugent. \u201cIt would remain to be seen whether fat is imported from the US home company, or whether it would be donated within the UK as well.\u201d The Human Tissue Authority did not respond to requests for comment on whether it would allow donated fat to be used in this way. So, don\u2019t bin your donor card yet. <\/p>\nAnd even if it were, Nugent notes that alloClae has altruistic potential: \u201cA lot of breast cancer reconstruction patients have fat transfer as well,\u201d she says. \u201cSo, its use wouldn\u2019t be entirely restricted to purely cosmetic purposes. But, for donors, it will be a very individual decision. Most people will assume their tissue will be used for someone badly in need.\u201d <\/p>\n
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\u2018Secret Lives of Mormon Wives\u2019 star Taylor Frankie Paul is among the celebrities who\u2019ve tried the treatment (Getty)<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\nShould fat be flown across the Atlantic, there would be an expiry date \u2013 but transportation is possible without the fat breaking down. \u201cIt\u2019s sterilised, so it has a shelf life,\u201d says Nugent. \u201cIt\u2019s not a living tissue anymore, so it doesn\u2019t need to be in a freezer or cold storage.\u201d <\/p>\n
That being said, demand is so high that America may not have much to spare. And, as cadaver fat is now a precious and finite resource, the procedure, including surgeon fees \u2013 can cost up to $100,000 (\u00a373,792), Business Insider <\/em>reports, depending on how many cubic centimetres of fat you want. As far as modern society is concerned, it\u2019s akin to sterilised gold. Earlier this year The Sun <\/em>reported that Taylor Frankie Paul of Secret Lives of Mormon Wives <\/em>was known to have received the treatment.<\/p>\nIf it does come to the UK, a similarly high price tag is expected initially. \u201cAlloclae is the first of its kind, so other companies will be looking at this and developing their own products,\u201d says Nugent. \u201cOver time, it would likely become cheaper or more alternatives would become available,\u201d she says. <\/p>\n
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\u2018Pure gold on demand\u2019: There are months-long wait lists for alloClae in the US (alloClae)<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\nNo end of warnings have been issued about the sale and use of cheap dermal fillers and Botox available online. With the demand for zombie filler predicted to soar, Nugent predicts a similar race to the bottom could take place if the right quality control measures aren\u2019t enforced. \u201cIt depends on whether knockoff versions come to the market,\u201d she says, \u201cand on the company’s sales policy, which, I’ve no reason to think, is anything other than above board at the moment.\u201d <\/p>\n
Safety aside, zombie filler initially seems like an Adam\u2019s Family nightmare that opens up the unforeseen ethical conundrum: Is it right to have somebody else\u2019s fat injected into your body? \u201cI’m not against it coming to the UK,\u201d says Nugent. \u201cFor me, it\u2019s in the same realm as donated skin for burn patients \u2013 or organ transplants. It\u2019s no spookier than that.\u201d <\/p>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Your support helps us to tell the story From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it’s investigating the financials of Elon Musk’s pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, ‘The A Word’, which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging. At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story. The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it. Your support makes all the difference. Read more Would you want fat from a dead body pumped into yours for a little added oomph? It\u2019s a morbid question many answered with a resounding \u201cyes\u201d when the so-called \u201czombie filler\u201d slowly emerged on the US market in 2024. Today, stateside clinics now have months-long backlogs of plump-seeking patients waiting to get their hands on vials of sterilised cadaver tissue. Read: Brazilian butt lifts (BBLs) and boob jobs are now being sourced from the morgue. Zombie filler \u2013 real name alloClae \u2013 was first released by manufacturer Tiger Aesthetics to a select group of doctors across the pond in 2024. When people donate their bodies to science after their death for altruistic acts like organ donation, tissue banks often collect their fat, too. Tiger Aesthetics then purchases it, screens it for diseases, sterilises and processes it, before selling it to surgeons in a little branded syringe, with the deceased\u2019s fat now resembling severely curdled cake batter. The main perk of having a dead person\u2019s fat injected into your body is a re…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":14524,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[2],"tags":[],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.seekyourlove.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/14523"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.seekyourlove.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.seekyourlove.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.seekyourlove.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.seekyourlove.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=14523"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.seekyourlove.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/14523\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.seekyourlove.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/14524"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.seekyourlove.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=14523"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.seekyourlove.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=14523"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.seekyourlove.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=14523"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}