Painful Cosmetic Fraud in Turkey
Sharon Maxwell, a 39-year-old mother from Ayrshire, Scotland, shared her distressing experience after undergoing cosmetic surgery in Turkey. Last October, she traveled to Istanbul with the intention of getting a facelift and a nose job. However, instead of the desired procedures, the clinic performed a skin lift, a treatment that tightens the face by pulling back the skin, and completely neglected the nose job.
Following the operation, the hairdresser and Airbnb host discovered a hole under her ear, which had been left unstitched by the medical staff. Miss Maxwell also recounted the appalling conditions she witnessed during her visit to the unnamed clinic, including patients suffering from persistent infections and others experiencing complications with breast implants protruding through their skin.
Motivated by her ordeal, Miss Maxwell now advocates for increased awareness regarding the risks associated with undergoing surgery abroad. Prior to her ill-fated trip to Turkey, she had undergone nine separate procedures since 2015 in Lithuania. When her regular surgeon in Lithuania refused to perform a nose job and advised against it, she decided to pay £7,000 to travel to Istanbul for the facelift and nose job, covering the costs of accommodation and flights.
One of the attractions of undergoing medical procedures abroad is the potential cost savings compared to private treatments in the UK. Miss Maxwell described her arrival at the hotel in Istanbul in the early hours of the morning, followed shortly by her procedure, which lasted a total of two-and-a-half hours. She recalls receiving anesthesia in the hallway without being informed beforehand.
According to Miss Maxwell, the surgeons did not carry out the requested nose job as she saw no change in her appearance post-surgery. Instead, they performed a skin lift, which only involved pulling back the skin without addressing the redistribution of fat and tissue associated with a facelift. She further lamented the inadequate stitching of her wound, resulting in a noticeable hole beneath her ear.
Expressing her frustration, Miss Maxwell stated that the surgeons refused to remove the cast or show her her nose until she returned home. To her disappointment, her nose remained unaltered, leaving her able to breathe normally but without the desired change.
Miss Maxwell’s harrowing experience serves as a cautionary tale, highlighting the importance of thorough research and awareness when considering cosmetic surgery abroad.