Do many of you worry about the future?

[Fookinhair]

Consider this old guy

 

http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_g_qX...Lkk/s400/old_man.jpg

 

This level of donor isn't altogether uncommon for someone in their 80s. Considering it looks like he could barely scrape a few hundred grafts together its pretty obvious a lot of people's donor will thin extensively and any HT hair would disappear along with showing an unsightly scar.

 

I'm just curious how many people worry that this may be them down the road?

 

True we have meds and future treatments such as ppr, but to date there is no magic bullet.

[Eman]

i dont think most of us will be worrying about our hairlines at that age.

 

I have thought about old age or cancer and the scar coming out in the light--but again if I had cancer, the scar would probably be the last thing I would worry about.

 

Making a decision like this is similar (not the same) as many other big life decisions--sometimes you just need to make them and move forward.

 

You can worry about what is going to happen in the future (and not truly live life) or enjoy life today...

[mmhce]

It's not fair to compare us to this elderly gentleman. Back when he was in his 20's, it probably didn't topical minoxidil and definitely didn't have finasteride; so he is not a suitable comparison.

 

This however does not negate your argument, which I questioned already on this forum.

[dakota3]

Hopefully when we are his age there will be a cure, however not many of us will care to much at that age. LOL

[Coligion]

This is also something that worries me. Sure, modern hair transplants may look great 5+ years post-op, but what about the long term results? I know your donor hair is supposed to be permanent, but it can also thin just as our other hair. I'm really curious to see how transplants performed today will hold up 15 to 20 years from now.

[Old Baldy]

Yes, there is old age baldness that I guess we'll experience if we live long enough.

[TC17]

It's easy for us to sit here today and say that we won't care when we're 60+, but there is no way to know whether we will care until we're actually that age. I think that Coligion hit the nail on the head. A transplant that looks great today, might look unnatural down the road. There is no way of knowing just how aggressive ones hair loss will eventually become, so even a very conservative approach can backfire if the patient progresses to the level of the man you posted. I believe that it is foolish to proceed with a surgery if the patient or physician is relying upon medication to continue working, an eventual cure, or the belief that when the patient reaches a certain age he will no longer care about his hair. Look on this site guys, there are MANY men who re 60+ who have been bald for 30 years and have just now decided to do something about their hair loss. If after 30 odd years of being bald they never stopped caring about their hair loss, what makes any of us think that we will cease caring?

 

Topics like this are never popular on this forum. I happen to think that some of the reasons for that are that nobody wants to be reminded about the potential pitfalls, others are truly of the belief that we are on the cusp of a cure and as a result will never reach that level of baldness, and some just don't do enough research to know that donors thin.

[aaron1234]

I've also given this alot of thought.

 

Both of my grandfather's are in their late 70's and both have more hair than I (before Fin and HT #1). If only I'm lucky enough to not progress much past a NW 6.

 

But I think Eman is right. By the time we reach that age we won't care much about how scar. And I have to think that we'd have so many wrinkles that it would be hard to even notice a scar by then.

[Take a chance]

If you're going to be worried about what happens to you when you're 70 you will never get anything done.

 

U got to live for the moment and enjoy life. Sure i might progress to an NW7 but for the moment I'm enjoying my life so much more with some hair.

 

I have a new lease on life. I'm almost 6 months post op and already so happy with my result. I've managed to lose 22pounds and look forward to everyday. This was not the case when i was an NW6.

 

If i do get future hair loss then i will cross that challenge when it happens. There are always options if you can put up the $$$.

 

Just my opinion.

[Raphael84]

In agreeance with the other guys. Sometimes looking ahead can be a little uneasy, especially after a HT and wondering how your donor area will hold up. But, Im 25. If I said no know, just for that reason, I would have another 45 years old hairloss issues that would bother me every day. I might not make it to 75. Although everything must be considered, and it is wise to ask questions. This is a non issue for me!

[Bill - Seemiller]

I think the idea here is that we try to look the best we can as we get older. Certainly we will not look the same when we're 60 as we did in our early 20s or 30s. But as we age, we continue to do what we can to look our best. Hair restoration should stand the test of time. But by the time we're as old as the guy in the photo, hair probably won't be our primary concern.

 

Best wishes,

 

Bill