A delivery system for delivering an expandable implant to a body location, the delivery system comprising: an elongate shaft assembly comprising a proximal end and a distal end, wherein the elongate shaft assembly comprises an implant retention area configured to retain the expandable implant in a compressed configuration, wherein the elongate shaft assembly comprises: an elongate tubular shaft comprising a proximal end (904; 1004) and a distal end (906; 1006) and a longitudinal axis extending between the proximal end (904; 1004) and the distal end (906; 1006), wherein the elongate tubular shaft comprises a plurality of slots (902; 1002) spaced apart longitudinally along a length of the elongate tubular shaft, each of the plurality of slots (902; 1002) being oriented substantially perpendicular to the longitudinal axis and comprising a proximal side, a distal side, and two circumferentially spaced apart opposite ends; wherein each slot (902; 1002) forms a gap between the proximal and distal sides of the slot (902; 1002) that is configured to close upon application of force to the elongate tubular shaft; wherein the opposite ends of the slots (902; 1002) are separated from each other by a spine portion (931; 1031) extending longitudinally along the length of the elongate tubular shaft; wherein the position and/or shape of the slots (902; 1002) varies along the length of the elongate tubular shaft to provide different bending characteristics to different portions of the elongate tubular shaft; wherein the plurality of slots have varying widths over the length of the elongate tubular shaft, the widths of the slots being defined between the two circumferentially spaced apart opposite ends; and; characterized in that the plurality of slots comprises a first slot section having a plurality of slots with a first width, a second slot section having a plurality of slots with a second width, and a third slot section having a plurality of slots with a third width, wherein the third width is greater than the second width and the second width is greater than the first width. an elongate tubular shaft comprising a proximal end (904; 1004) and a distal end (906; 1006) and a longitudinal axis extending between the proximal end (904; 1004) and the distal end (906; 1006), wherein the elongate tubular shaft comprises a plurality of slots (902; 1002) spaced apart longitudinally along a length of the elongate tubular shaft, each of the plurality of slots (902; 1002) being oriented substantially perpendicular to the longitudinal axis and comprising a proximal side, a distal side, and two circumferentially spaced apart opposite ends; wherein each slot (902; 1002) forms a gap between the proximal and distal sides of the slot (902; 1002) that is configured to close upon application of force to the elongate tubular shaft; wherein the opposite ends of the slots (902; 1002) are separated from each other by a spine portion (931; 1031) extending longitudinally along the length of the elongate tubular shaft; wherein the position and/or shape of the slots (902; 1002) varies along the length of the elongate tubular shaft to provide different bending characteristics to different portions of the elongate tubular shaft; wherein the plurality of slots have varying widths over the length of the elongate tubular shaft, the widths of the slots being defined between the two circumferentially spaced apart opposite ends; and; characterized in that the plurality of slots comprises a first slot section having a plurality of slots with a first width, a second slot section having a plurality of slots with a second width, and a third slot section having a plurality of slots with a third width, wherein the third width is greater than the second width and the second width is greater than the first width.