Acid attack model praises Chelsea surgeons

The depth of the burns from the sulphuric acid penetrated all layers of the skin on Katie's face and elsewhere on her body.

Her injuries were so severe that they destroyed all four layers of the skin down to the fat.

Surgeon Mr Mohammad Jawad used an artificial skin substitute to rebuild the epidermis and dermis layers on Katie's face before grafting skin from her back and bottom onto her face.

She is believed to be the first patient in the UK to have such a complex facial reconstruction using this type of artificial skin in a single operation.

Ms Piper said: "I owe my life to the doctors, nurses and all the other staff in the Burns Service at Chelsea and Westminster Hospital.

"I would have died without their amazing efforts immediately after I was attacked and over the last 18 months they have supported me every step of the way during my treatment.

"Coming to terms with the fact that my life as I knew it before the acid attack was over, and that my facial appearance had changed forever, has been incredibly difficult."

"I want to say thank you to everyone in the Burns Service, in particular my surgeon Mohammad Jawad who has done an amazing job of rebuilding my face - it has exceeded my expectations of what I ever thought would be medically possibly.

"I'm absolutely thrilled."

Mr Jawad added his praise for Ms Piper's courage and determination to survive her injuries.

He said: "It has been my privilege as Katie's surgeon to work with this remarkable young woman.

"Her care was a real team effort, involving not only Burns specialists but also staff in our Intensive Care Unit, gastroenterology and eye departments, and many other areas of the hospital."

The programme will be screened at 9pm on October 29, on Channel 4.