TV presenter Katie Piper has revealed she has had an “artificial eye” for more than 16 years after an acid attack left her with life-changing burns and partial blindness. The 41-year-old The Loose Women panellist, who is an advocate for burns and mutilation, shared a video of herself being fitted with the prosthesis. In a post on Instagram, she said: “After years of struggling with my eye health, I’ve come to a bit of a dead end and the decision was made to try prosthetic eyes. “This marks the beginning of the journey to an artificial eye with an incredible medical team behind me. “As always, I am incredibly grateful to all NHS and private healthcare staff for their talent and kindness. “I’m going to share my journey, I’m hopeful and anxious about being able to endure it and would love to hear from any of you in the comments if you’ve been on this journey or have any advice.” TV presenter Stacey Dooley and radio star Gabby Roslin left heart emojis in the comments, while model and presenter Lisa Snowdon described Piper as a “warrior” and a “true inspiration”. Singer and former X Factor contestant Lucy Spraggan said: “I’ve just been trying to think of a word to describe you and I literally can’t, your energy is beyond words. And this is felt by a lot of people. You are a miracle.” In 2022, Piper told ITV’s Loose Women that she had an “emergency corneal transplant” after noticing a perforation and pain in her left eye, which left her blind. The former model, who underwent hundreds of operations over the past decade and a half, in March 2008. survived an acid attack by her ex-boyfriend. After surviving the attack at the age of 24, the former model waived her right to remain anonymous and in 2009 made a Channel 4 documentary called Katie: My Pretty Face. In 2009, she founded the Cathy Piper Foundation, which supports survivors of life-changing burns and scars, and received an honorary doctorate from the Royal College of Surgeons in recognition of her pioneering work with the foundation. In 2021, Piper, the presenter of ITV’s Cathy Piper’s Breakfast Show, was named in the Queen’s New Year’s Honors List for her services to charity and victims of burns and other disabilities.
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