A STOCKTON woman is set to appear on the first episode of an award winning BBC series after undergoing life-saving surgery.

Shelly, from Stockton-on-Tees, will feature in the new series of the highly-acclaimed Surgeons: At the Edge of Life, which begins on Tuesday October 6 on BBC Two.

The documentary series, filmed at Royal Papworth Hospital and Addenbrooke's Hospital in Cambridge before the coronavirus pandemic, highlights the extraordinary work of surgical teams at the two hospitals as they perform some of the most complex operations in the world.

In the first episode, 55-year-old Shelly undergoes pulmonary endarterectomy surgery at Royal Papworth, the only centre in the UK that offers this procedure, in an attempt to cure her chronic thromboembolic pulmonary hypertension (CTEPH).

last year, before her operation, Shelly wasn't even able to go out for walks with her husband Phil and dog Rambo.

She said: "At first I thought it was my asthma making me tired and out of breath, but the treatment I was being given for asthma wasn’t working.

“I had scans and tests to see what the problem was and we eventually found out it was CTEPH.”

Soon before surgery Shelly was diagnosed with breast cancer. Unable to begin treatment until she had the pulmonary endarterectomy, the date of the procedure was brought forward.

She said: "I was very nervous before the operation, Phil wasn't able to come in the hospital transport with me so I was on my own."

Pulmonary endarterectomy, otherwise known as PTE or PEA surgery, is a major procedure to remove the occlusive blood clots from the pulmonary artery branches within the lungs.

Mr David Jenkins, Consultant Cardiothoracic Surgeon and Divisional Director of Surgery at Royal Papworth, is the lead surgeon for the national pulmonary endarterectomy programme and performed Shelly’s operation.

He said: "“The remarkable thing about this surgery is the need to drain all the blood out of the body to allow the surgeon to see enough to clear the clots.

“This can only be achieved by cooling the patient’s body to 20 degrees Celsius – almost half of normal body temperature – to prevent damage to vital organs, including the brain.”