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The beauty industry has seen it all: salmon sperm, vampire facials, snail mucin and even Gwyneth Paltrow’s bee-sting therapy.
But, this latest development may just give you a fright. Cue cadaver collagen.
No need to read it again, it’s exactly what you think it is. Yes, people are injecting themselves with substances harvested from deceased humans.
It’s a treatment gaining huge popularity in South Korea and south-east Asia, building on the momentum of other youth-chasing injectibles.
Marketed as a regenerative skin treatment, Ben Taylor-Davies, former A&E doctor turned aesthetician, tells Metro cadaver collagen is intended to ‘rebuild the skin’s extracellular matrix (the “scaffolding” of the skin) rather than simply adding hydration or volume’ (which is what standard anti-wrinkle injections do).
The promise is firmer, smoother and more elastic skin, as well as reduced fine lines and pores.
But, as you’d expect when there are dead bodies involved, there’s a whole host of potential problems.
How do you even harvest cadaver collagen?
Put simply, Dr Taylor-Davies says you need donated skin from a deceased donor, who has consented to its use.
‘The tissue is processed to remove the donor’s cells and genetic material, while preserving structural proteins such as collagen and elastin,’ he explains. ‘It’s then purified, sterilised and made into tiny injectable particles.’
In doctor terms, this material is called ‘processed human dermal matrix’, which is a far more palatable (and accurate) way of saying ‘collagen from a dead body’.
This is then injected into the skin, under brand names such as Elravie Re20, currently one of the most popular used in South Korea.
Can you get it in the UK?
If you’re wondering why you haven’t seen cadaver collagen marketed in aesthetic clinics here in the UK, that’s because it’s illegal here.
‘It’s not legal here to inject human-derived products and I don’t think it’s likely to get to that point any time soon,’ Dr Taylor-Davies points out.
‘When we inject cellular material they’re currently plant or animal derived — polynucleotides, for example, are derived from fish.’
We use skin donors for reconstructive surgery and wound care in Britain, but when it comes to cosmetic treatments, the regulations are tight. This is largely due to important ethical considerations.
‘Even where they’re sourced from donated human skin, there’s always a question mark over provenance,’ says Dr Taylor-Davies. ‘We’ve already seen human-derived products popping up in regulated UK clinics and the big question is: where have these actually come from?
‘A cosmetic product must have the correct regulatory approval, lawful supply chain, donor consent, traceability and safety controls before it can be injected into a patient.’
Safety is another big problem. There’s already been botched botulinum toxin-related botulism cases in recent years, sparking warnings over ‘dangerous, unlicensed products’.
Using human-derived products only exacerbates the dangers. ‘Any injectable — plant, animal or human derived — needs to be cultured and manufactured in an incredibly controlled, sterile environment,’ Dr Taylor-Davies adds.
‘That’s especially true for human-derived products, where we need absolute certainty they’re sterile, disease-free and of known provenance.
‘I don’t think it will ever be safe to offer these treatments in the UK unless they sit under a proper regulatory umbrella and I can’t currently see the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) approving the use of human-derived tissue.’
The pros and cons
As with any injectable, there’s always going to be risks, but in this case there may be a few more involved.
‘These treatments would carry the usual risks including bruising, swelling, infection, inflammation, lumps and accidental injection into a blood vessel,’ the doctor explains.
‘But because they’re made from donated human tissue, there are also theoretical risks of immune reactions, contamination or infection if donor screening and manufacturing processes fail.’
While these risks are obviously low, they certainly aren’t zero.
That being said, initial evidence does show these injections do seem to be giving patients the desired results.
‘Researchers reported improvements in skin density, elasticity, wrinkles, pores and hydration after treatment,’ he adds. ‘That suggests patients might see smoother, firmer and better-hydrated skin with softer fine lines and less visible pores.
‘Because the material comes from human skin, it may more closely resemble our own dermal structure than animal-derived collagen.’
The catch? That study only lasted 20 weeks and was relatively small, and was also conducted by those involved in the product’s development.
Ultimately Dr Taylor-Davies believes the science is plausible and early results are promising, however, the products are being marketed more than tested.
That’s not to mention the fact that people not be overly comfortable at the thought of being injected with a dead person’s cells…
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