A mum who had to have her gallbladder removedafter it started "rotting" when she took Mounjaro says she has "no regrets" after losing 8st and still takes the jab.

Emma McDonald, 38, started taking Mounjaro in June 2024 after reaching 21st and a size 24. But in August 2024, having lost 2st, Emma was hit with an "excruciating" indigestion pain, which she'd blamed on upping her dose to 7.5mg.

She drove herself to A&E to get it checked out - where an ultrasound revealed she had a "substantial" gallstone blocking her bile duct, and a condition called cholecystitis - which meant the gallbladder had become inflamed.

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If left untreated, cholecystitis can lead to life-threatening complications like sepsis, gangrene and bowel perforation. In October, Emma had a cholecystectomy -a procedure to completely remove her gallbladder - and a biopsy revealed the organ had been "rotting" inside her body.

Now recovered from her illness, Emma says she's still regularly taking a 7.5mg dosage of Mounjaro and has reached 12st 9lbs and a size 12 - leaving her with "no regrets". New NHS England statistics revealed the number of gallbladder surgeries recorded in 2024-25 was at the highest peak the past decade.

And since the UK approved jabs for weight loss gallbladder removals have risen. They shot up from 69,745 in 2023-24 to 80,196 gallbladder operations in 2024-25 - a 15% increase.

And experts, who spoke to the BBC, said there could be a link between the weight loss jabs and the rise - as gallstone are listed as a common side effect - and say more research is needed.

Mum-of-one Emma, a content creator, from Oxford, said: "I was told my gallbladder had gone rotten and Mounjaro was an exacerbating factor - but overall, I'm much healthier now so I don't have any regrets.

"Mounjaro was my last resort, I had a massive weight gain after giving birth and my PCOS made it difficult to lose it. I was anticipating side effects and in June, July-time I was getting some stinging in my ribs - but I thought it was indigestion.

"But it went from stinging in my ribs to excruciating, indigestion-like pain - I used to stand underneath a hot shower until it passed."

Self-confessed "grazer" Emma found herself picking at food "constantly" after the birth of her daughter in 2021. Her snacks of choice would include bags of crisps, chocolate and biscuits - as well as a Chinese takeaway at the end of the day.

But Emma soon realised she struggled to get into size 22 work trousers - resorting to wearing hoodies and leggings all the time instead.

After visiting her GP in June 2024, she was diagnosed with PCOS and prescribed 2.5mg Mounjaro for her weight loss. Within five weeks on the jabs, she found her periods returned and was gradually losing weight.

"When my work clothes stopped fitting, that was my wake-up call," she said. "I started Mounjaro in June 2024 - within the year I lost 8st."

After one month on the jabs, Emma started to experience episodes of "burning" in her ribs - but put it down to indigestion.

By August 2024, the burning had progressed to an "excruciating" trapped wind sensation, which left Emma unable to cope.

She drove herself to A&E where an emergency ultrasound revealed she had a "substantially large" gallstone blocking her bile duct - leaving her at risk of sepsis.

Emma was booked in for a total cholecystectomy - a procedure to remove the gallbladder - in October 2024, and her surgeon encouraged her to stay on Mounjaro so she could go under the anaesthetic.

"By this point, I was about 19st," she said. "I cracked on with the recovery period - it was painful and I had four holes in my stomach.

"I'm transitioning back into eating more food now - I've been finding meat really hard to digest since the operation."

Despite feeling well now and having no regrets about the jabs, Emma wants to raise awareness of gallbladder issues in women.

Women are two to three times more likely to suffer from cholecystitis than men, according to the National Institutes of Health (NIH) - with factors like substantial weight loss, birth control, and giving birth contributing.

"I can't stress enough how much women are at risk of it," Emma said. "It was a perfect storm of having PCOS, a massive weight gain after giving birth and using Mounjaro.

"But I don’t have any regrets - Mounjaro has helped me take control of my life."