Van, at 26 I would suggest at least a year of Propecia before you consider a HT.
2 factors to consider:

1. You do not know how you will respond to Propecia. You may see enough regrowth in the mid-scalp to crown area to satisfy you at this time in your life.
(most cost effective + non-surgical method right at this time)

2. You nor any surgeon can forecast your future hairloss. You could shock some existing "weakened" follicles by doing a HT and be right back to square one. Of course this can happen during any surgery, but at least you will understand that you may need additional surgeries to get you where you want to be.

I would still do some consults with REPUTABLE and ETHICAL surgeons only, just to familiarize yourself with the process, cost, etc... Given that you are from Canada you have H&W and Shapiro Medical just a short flight away, so I would look there to start.

I hope this helps you out and please feel free to post additional photos or questions if you need to. There are many members on this forum with a wealth of knowledge to share.
PS: to answer your question, I don't think you need any grafts right now =)

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Go Cubs!

6721 transplanted grafts
13,906 hairs
Performed by Dr. Ron Shapiro

Dr. Ron Shapiro and Dr. Paul Shapiro are members of the Coalition of Independent Hair Restoration Physicians.

thinningVan,

B spot has some good advice for you. The top looks a little thin, but, I would guess looking at you from the front your coverage appears decent.

Try Propecia (finasteride) and see if it helps. At the least, it will drastically slow your loss if not stop it...........and you may experience some regrowth. You could use a concealer to help thicken it and you may want to start a scalp and hair care regimen using Nizoral, Nioxin or others recommended in threads on this site.

Also, B spot's point #2 is a valid one. Though I was 38 at my first HT, I did experience shock loss to my native hair and less than 50% seems to have returned since they were already on the way out due to MPB. The overall effect of the 1200 grafts from my first HT is a thicker appearance, but the permanent shock loss put a bit of a damper on it.

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Hairbank

1st HT 1-18-05 - 1200 FUT's
2nd HT 2-15-06 - 3886 FUT's Dr. Wong
3rd HT 4-24-08 - 2415 FUT's Dr. Wong

GRAND TOTAL: 7501 GRAFTS

current regimen: 1.25mg finasteride every other day

My Hair Loss Weblog

Disclaimer: I'm not a Doctor (and have never played one on TV ) and have no medical training. Any information I share here is in an effort to help those who don't like hair loss.

Hi there,
I think that the more you can afford to do the better. Consider this, if you have a full head of hair you have about 20,000 Grafts on your healthy, full head of hair head. When you initially notice balding, you have already lost over 50% of your hair. When a surgeon transfers 2000 Grafts thats barely 10% of what a full head of hair has. But the artistry behind hair transplants is to position those Grafts nicely , so that the end result is a look of a full head of hair. My advice would be to go for atleast 2000 grafts, and possibbly go on Propecia inorder to salvage what you have left.
Unfortunately I don't know how much the cost would be in Canada.

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I am employed as the patient consultant for the Advanced Medical Hair Institute, Dr. Williams office in Las Vegas, NV.

Thanks for the advice everyone.

H&W gave me back my consult and suggested 4000 grafts. That's $15,000. I can't afford that. I'm going to go on propecia like a lot of people have suggested. I can live with my current hair, and some regrowth would be a bonus.

Thanks for everyone's advice, it's been very helpful.

A wise choice. See how it goes for a year or so, you can always save and do the HT later if necessary. At your age and with the loss you've experienced, Propecia and a good hair care regimen could do wonders for maintaining and possibly regrowing some hair.

It's a good idea to document your journey on propecia, otherwise it can be tough to see the results. You may already plan this but if not, I'd recommend photos every other month or so to track your progress.

As I mentioned in my earlier post, I'd recommend you try a concealer. They really work well and with the hair you already have you're a prime candidate. I'd recommend you try Dermmatch. It's less than $30 for a supply that will last you well over a year.

Good luck.

__________________
Hairbank

1st HT 1-18-05 - 1200 FUT's
2nd HT 2-15-06 - 3886 FUT's Dr. Wong
3rd HT 4-24-08 - 2415 FUT's Dr. Wong

GRAND TOTAL: 7501 GRAFTS

current regimen: 1.25mg finasteride every other day

My Hair Loss Weblog

Disclaimer: I'm not a Doctor (and have never played one on TV ) and have no medical training. Any information I share here is in an effort to help those who don't like hair loss.