A woman who lost more than eight stone hoping to qualify for an NHS reduction op on her 44M breasts has been left in agony after being turned down.

Marie Pickstock, 44, of Lancing, pleaded for help because her chest was so enormous she could barely walk.Doctors told the mother-of-two, who weighed 22 stones, she had to lost weight if she hoped to qualify for taxpayer-funded surgery.

She shed 8st 6lb in two years by cutting out greasy feasts and went down to 13-and-a-half stone.

But when she went back to the doctors they told her she did not qualify for a breast reduction because her case was not extreme enough.

Mrs Pickstock is still burdened with 36L breasts she says have effectively made her disabled because of her limited mobility.

She has dropped an incredible 14 dress sizes around her waist which is a size ten - but still has to wear size 26 outfits because of her huge upper body.

Mrs Pickstock now says she was better off when she was fat because at least she had her huge stomach to rest her breasts on and take the weight off her back.

She said: "I feel really let down by the NHS because I stuck to my side of the bargain.

"The doctor said I had to help myself first, which I have done. So why won't they give me a breast reduction?

"I've saved the taxpayer thousands by losing weight through dieting and not asking for a gastric band.

"I'm not asking the NHS for this operation for cosmetic reasons. My breasts are ruining my life.

"I have no confidence. I don't like showing myself to anyone and I refuse to undress in front of my husband

"I should be super confident and proud of my new slim body, but instead I feel horrible."

She said she has been told she is at greater risk of breast cancer because the six mammograms images she needs for each breast are so unreliable.

An NHS West Sussex spokesman said: "Our Clinical Commissioning Group, and that of its predecessor body the primary care trust, is clear that breast reduction surgery is not a procedure routinely available on the NHS.

"If a patient feels they need this treatment, their clinician would have to make an application to a specialist panel for individual funding demonstrating that there are exceptional clinical circumstances why the patient should receive the treatment outside of the policy.

"We understand Mrs Pickstock's case was considered three times by the specialist panel run by the former primary care trust in 2011 and 2012 and it found no clinical evidence that Mrs Pickstock's case was exceptional.

"We appreciate this is disappointing for Mrs Pickstock, particularly after her recent weight loss, but would like to make it clear a patient's weight is not taken into consideration as part of this process.

"As commissioners, we ensure that local health professionals are informed about the process for applications for treatments such as this, and we are sorry if the policy was not made clear to Mrs Pickstock at the time."

Tory MP Tim Loughton, for East Worthing and Shoreham, has promised to look at her case.