French student's tragic end after botched Istanbul beard surgery
Mathieu, a 24-year-old student from France, had long dreamt of having a thicker beard. To fulfil this aspiration, he decided to undergo a beard transplant at a clinic in Istanbul, attracted by the alluring price of the procedure. According to French media, this is when his nightmare began. Tragically, the young man is no longer with us.
After completing all the necessary tests, Mathieu went to a clinic in Istanbul that had the approval of the Turkish Ministry of Health. The French newspaper "Le Parisien" reported that the procedure occurred on 2nd March 2024. He paid 1,300 euros (approximately £1,120).
The procedure involved transplanting specially selected hair from the back of the head to the beard area. A so-called “surgeon” in Turkey assured Mathieu it was a simple procedure, but the 24-year-old student immediately sensed something was amiss when he left the operating room.
Surgeon turned out to be a real estate agent
Since the procedure, the young man experienced burning facial pain and continuously festering wounds. Furthermore, at the back of his head, the hair did not regrow – he lost about a thousand hairs due to the transplant.
Upon returning to France, Mathieu began investigating the clinic's activities and the "doctor" who performed the procedure. It emerged that the alleged surgeon was not qualified and worked as a real estate agent.
For two months, the family searched for a specialist who could rectify the failed procedure for Mathieu. Eventually, they found a doctor in Belgium willing to attempt a reconstruction. Sadly, the 24-year-old did not live to see the results.
Just four months after the ill-fated procedure, Mathieu took his own life in his room in Paris. In a conversation with "Le Parisien," his father disclosed that his son could not endure the sight of his reflection in the mirror, feeling he no longer recognised himself.
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