2000 grafts with Dr Bicer - March'23

[JDB89]

Hi all,

Thought I would start this post in advance to hold myself accountable for posting future updates.

I'm 33 from the UK. My hair is naturally curly (and thick so I'm told) although I often style it swept in a particular direction. Mr hair loss has happened in a few waves over the years though is not too dramatic at this point and I hope to have now stabilised it. I have been on Fin for about 5-6 years (although have had a couple of year-long breaks whilst partner pregnant) and I use Minoxidil on and off as find it can dry my head out (have a history of eczema). 

Finally took the plunge and booked in May'22 after years of research and dithering. The first available date was March'23 although I believe now the current waiting list may be even longer. All communication with Ozen and Dr Bicer has been nice and easy so far. During the consultation Dr Bicer was surprised I wanted a HT as can hide the thin patches with styling but said it was ultimately my decision as to how much it bothered me. As I now feel the loss is stable, I decided that if I could sort my hair out now and future-proof with Fin+Min then why delay.

I'll upload some 'before' pics as I haven't seen many examples of people with my hair type and level of grafts so would be interested to hear from anyone else who was in a similar position. Then will keep revisiting this post to post updates as I know how frustrating it can be to see the first part of a journey but not the end!

Hairline

 

Natural/Curly (still product in)

 

Styled

 

Crown

[WhiteyUK]

Agree you could have held on for a few more years, especially looking at the 2nd pic. But it is up to you how you feel …..

good luck from a fellow UK’r

[JDB89]

It's a bit of a double edged sword. If I style it curly, I hide the front but expose the crown but if I sweep it back I hide the crown but expose the front more.

But I definitely agree that it's not the worst as it currently is, I just want maximum enjoyment of not having to avoid swimming pools and high winds! Haha

[Curious25]

I think you’re making a good decision going ahead with a HT, given the concerns you have expressed. 
 

What is the plan for the 2000 grafts, Restore the hairline, and leave the crown alone? 

[Curious25]

If topical minoxidil is an issue for you, daily 5mg oral minoxidil may very well regrow that crown area. The oral version will hopefully ensure more consistency - I get the impression due to your wording of using minoxidil on and off, it possibly hasn’t been given the opportunity to work its wonders on you, given that regular and continued use is the key to success for all hair loss medication. 
 

But going off your crown pic anyway, I have seen A LOT of regrowth cases with OM use in patients from an almost identical starting point. 
 

Hairline will need to be transplanted  for sure. 

[JDB89]

The going to hit both crown and hairline in the HT. I plan on returning to topical minoxidil full time after the HT and will switch up shampoos etc to protect the skin. I'm not against having it in oral form, just understand it's a pain to get hold of in the UK at the minute so happy to go again with topical.

[Gramatik]

how many grafts did dr bicer suggest for your case to cover both crown and front part?

[JDB89]

The estimate from the consultation was 2000 being approx 600 for each front corner and 800 for the crown. 

 

55 minutes ago, Gramatik said:

how many grafts did dr bicer suggest for your case to cover both crown and front part?

 

[Mike10]

It is a bit disappointing to see that Finansteride did not do its job in the crown. That is where it is supposed to work best. The front still looks ok. so leave the front alone and work on the crown. you gotta think long term man and not waste grafts now on the front. 

[Curious25]

47 minutes ago, Mike10 said:

It is a bit disappointing to see that Finansteride did not do its job in the crown. That is where it is supposed to work best. The front still looks ok. so leave the front alone and work on the crown. you gotta think long term man and not waste grafts now on the front. 

More terrible advice - you should be banned from commenting on here because you’re wildly misinformed on most of the input you provide, and constantly very negative. 

Transplanting into OP‘S crown is a much more complex approach than restoring the slick bald temple points; 

A) because there is still a lot of miniaturised hair in the crown - posing a difficulty in design, graft allocation, ascertaining graft count,future planning, and shock loss. 

 

B) He is planning on consistently restarting topical minoxidil - which with continued use of 6+ months has huge potential in thickening the miniaturised hairs and filling in the lighter areas. 
 

I’m surprised at Dr Bicer‘s plan to go with 800 grafts here, given I have always perceived her to be more of a conservative surgeon.
I would have thought a much more universal strategy would be to focus 2000 grafts on the hairline (600 either side isn’t likely to be enough IMO) and leave the crown for the time being, due to the difficulty it poses - and the fact that it’s important to give medication a good chance to hopefully nullify the need for transplantation. 

Surprised you’ve not recommended PRP Mike 🙄
 

 

[JDB89]

I think perhaps my crown pic didn't do it justice. I definitely agree that consistent minoxidil will help it in the long run but proportionally has thinned much more than my hairline. Hopefully these pics show the crown a bit more clearly (although I definitely don't plan on leaving the front and just doing the crown!)

[Grant]

15 hours ago, JDB89 said:

The going to hit both crown and hairline in the HT. I plan on returning to topical minoxidil full time after the HT and will switch up shampoos etc to protect the skin. I'm not against having it in oral form, just understand it's a pain to get hold of in the UK at the minute so happy to go again with topical.

I’m from the uk and it’s easy to get hold of oral minoxidil 

from manual dot co

[JDB89]

Cheers for that. Will give it a look into after I finish the batch of topical I have incoming. Shame oral is double the price, would much prefer over topical all things being equal

[Mike10]

22 hours ago, Curious25 said:

More terrible advice - you should be banned from commenting on here because you’re wildly misinformed on most of the input you provide, and constantly very negative. 

Transplanting into OP‘S crown is a much more complex approach than restoring the slick bald temple points; 

A) because there is still a lot of miniaturised hair in the crown - posing a difficulty in design, graft allocation, ascertaining graft count,future planning, and shock loss. 

 

B) He is planning on consistently restarting topical minoxidil - which with continued use of 6+ months has huge potential in thickening the miniaturised hairs and filling in the lighter areas. 
 

I’m surprised at Dr Bicer‘s plan to go with 800 grafts here, given I have always perceived her to be more of a conservative surgeon.
I would have thought a much more universal strategy would be to focus 2000 grafts on the hairline (600 either side isn’t likely to be enough IMO) and leave the crown for the time being, due to the difficulty it poses - and the fact that it’s important to give medication a good chance to hopefully nullify the need for transplantation. 

Surprised you’ve not recommended PRP Mike 🙄
 

 

But is not the Dr herself planning to do work in the crown? Prefer to spend a few more bucks on the PRPj  than ruin my health with medication if that is ok for you

 

 

Edited January 19, 2023 by Mike10

[receedinglegend]

I had a similar thing where I couldn't commit to minoxidyl twice a day for more than 4 more months or so - and even then the results were negligible. I got on oral minox from manual about 6 months ago and it makes life so much easier + I saw better gains than I ever saw from topical. Good luck with the transplant  please break the convention of Bicer patients who stop posting after 3 months 🙏

[JDB89]

Will do! Planning to do monthly upto about a year. Think I'll give oral min a go after I finish the 6 month batch of topical I've just got and suck up the cost

[receedinglegend]

hey mate, did you end up getting it done? @JDB89

[JDB89]

5 minutes ago, receedinglegend said:

hey mate, did you end up getting it done? @JDB89

Yes mate! Will try and get a post up tomorrow, just messaged the clinic asking for my before/during/after photos. Otherwise I'll just use what I've taken so far 👍🏻

[JDB89]

Hi all,

It's now 2 weeks post HT and thought it was finally time to add my write up and progress! I'll keep the description of the trip fairly brief as no one needs a blow by blow account of what I ate but happy to answer any detailed questions.

21/03/2023

I flew overnight from the UK to Istanbul via Pegasus airlines (take off 11.15, land 5.55 with the time diff). I picked this to save an extra night in a hotel and meant I'd be able to get to the clinic the day before my HT to do paperwork and bloods etc. With hindsight, not my best call as only got about 3 hours sleep and if I had to do it again would get a daytime flight

22/03/2023

After I landed, went through customs, got baggage etc I went to the taxi area (was notified in advance where to go and who to look out for). I used the hotel and VIP transfer package offered by the clinic which is more expensive but super easy for peace of mind. Got taken straight to the clinic, although I was there before they opened so I just did some reading in the lobby to kill time.

Went up to the clinic at 9 am where I filled all the paperwork out with Ozen. Dr Bicer arrived and we spoke briefly about my aims, desired look etc. She toyed with the idea of keeping the hair long and doing unshaven FUE as far as possible but we ultimately agreed that the best results would be full shave. As this is what I had prepared mysef for I didn't mind, I think it was because I was having less grafts than they usually do that she entertained the idea but ultimately the quality of the end result was the highest priority so she re-advised full shave. Had blood taken then had another sit down with Dr Bicer. She asked if I wanted the surgery that same afternoon (as opposed to the next day as originally planned). I was more than happy to do so as it would mean an extra day of recovery before flying home.

I checked into my suite unpacked my things and went for a wander round the local area. Bought some supplies for next few days, grabbed some lunch then showered ahead of surgery.

Went up to the clinic at 4pm where Dr Bicer spent about 20 mins drawing the hairline. She asked for input from me and her team making tiny tweaks all the while, which was nice to see how highly she valued everyone's opinion in getting to the best result. Once drawn I changed into their provided clothes and had my head shaved and washed. I was then taking upstairs where Dr Bicer again revisited the hairline now that my head was shaven and made a couple more tweaks. She estimated that the initial thought of 2000 grafts could be more like 1800, with 1400-1500 hairline and 300-400 crown. I was given a xanax put onto an IV before being given local anaesthetic injections over my heads. These were a tiny bit uncomfortable but nothing unmanageable, very short-lived and localised pain so passed almost instantly. Surgery itself passed in a haze as I kept dropping off to sleep! Dr Bicer did all the extractions and incisions and her team of nurses place the grafts into the slits. Next thing I knew it had just ticked past 10pm and I was finished! Due to a combination of all the travelling and lack of sleep, I slept like a baby!

23/03/2023

Went back to the clinic in the morning to have the bandages removed. The blood was washed off my donor and Dr Bicer inspected my head, which she confirmed she was very happy with how the surgery went. She thinks I have enjoy a very natural, good result (once all regrown and thickened), she did mention that due to the thickness of my native hair, I could have a second HT in the future if I truly wanted to match the density but I would be very happy with the results I have. For reference she said my native hair is a 10/10 density and she thought the transplanted areas would end up about an 8/10 so is purely personal preference at this point.

I then spent the rest of the day and most of the next day relaxing, reading, watching videos etc before getting my transfer to the airport. As I had to check out a few hours before the transport was due, Ozen kindly said I could wait in the clinic until then instead of having to wander around outside. Uneventful journey to the airport but was slow due to being in rush hour. Plenty of people in the airport with sore heads and bandages so nothing to feel self-confident about!

Overall

Very happy with my whole experience with Dr Bicer, Ozen and her team. I spent so long researching in advance that I didn't feel I asked many questions whilst I was there but would recommend in a heartbeat anyone thinking of going there. Pics to follow...

[JDB89]

I haven't got the clinic photos back yet but here is what I took myself. Pics from directly after, 1 week and 2 weeks post

 

[receedinglegend]

Wow, looks clean mate. Looking forward to seeing how it progresses

[duckling]

That Third pic must have been so satisfying to look at. Sure the pic was not best resolution but seeing hair all over the scalp when you take a picture must have been satisfying.

I have exactly same pattern of hair loss like you .. (little bit of hairline receeding with crown thinning but i am 27 so mine is slightly denser).

You results give so much hope.. and when you talked about styling hair to either choose between hiding crown or hairline i could relate so much 😄 . Its such a problem when you start to lose both. 

Congrats on getting a great surgeon and good luck for your results 🙂 

Edited April 7, 2023 by duckling

[Spring15]

You have similar hair texture to mine, thick & curly - Great hair transplant characteristics apparently. Good luck pal

[Dillpickle123]

6 hours ago, Spring15 said:

You have similar hair texture to mine, thick & curly - Great hair transplant characteristics apparently. Good luck pal

Same your hair looks similar to mine too same amount of grafts good luck!

[Gatsby]

Great hair characteristics and as you are on meds this will be a great result! Happy growing and thanks for sharing!