Botched liposuction job will cost Ontario woman $20,000 to correct

An Ontario woman who had dreams of correcting what she referred to as her “double chin” will now have to pay as much as $20,000 to remedy a botched cosmetic surgery.

“I'm depressed and crying every day and I started taking medication for my depression. I look in the mirror, I see all these scars," said Riba Hassan of Thornhill, Ont.

Hassan said she approached a plastic surgery clinic to get liposuction on her neck. She said that while she was concerned the doctor who was to perform the procedure had limited experience, she went ahead and paid $5,000 for the operation.

"This part of my face is like a double chin, it was bothering me, so I decided to have some kind of liposuction, like a small surgery,” Hassan said.

When the surgery was completed, Hassan had bulging areas on her neck and scaring around her ears. The same clinic performed a second surgery free of charge, but the issues remained and were not corrected.

While the original operation cost $5,000, Hassan said she will now have to pay much more to have the issues with her neck resolved.

“It depends, different doctors, the good doctors, say it is not going to be less than $20,000, but somewhere between $15,000 and $25,000,” Hassan said.

While the clinic agreed to continue to work with Hassan to try and deal with her concerns, she said she no longer feels comfortable dealing with them.

There's been an increase in cosmetic surgeries during the pandemic due in part to more people using video calling and sharing photos on social media.

While the majority of procedures are completed without issues, surgeons who deal with plastic surgery operations say with any medical procedure there can be risks.

Dr. Julie Khanna is a plastic surgeon with 25 years of experience and is not involved in Hassan’s case. Khanna is the past president of the Canadian Society for Aesthetic Plastic Surgery and the medical director of Plastic Surgery ICLS in Oakville, Ont.

Khanna said that before going forward with any plastic surgery procedure, research is key and it’s important to make sure the doctor is experienced and certified.

“I think whenever you're thinking about plastic surgery, the most important thing is to go to somebody who's qualified and somebody who specializes in this field,” Khanna said.

Khanna said it’s important to “check that they are trained by the Royal College of Surgeons and make sure that they have that designation.”

“Also look at their practice, what do they do? Make sure you're going to somebody who is reputable and meet more than one doctor," Khanna said.

CTV News Toronto reached out to the clinic where Hassan had her procedures performed, but we did not receive a comment. The clinic did agree to refund Hassan the $5,000 she paid for the surgery.

“I’m happy, it’s good, because at least I can use that money for the other surgery I need to do,” Hassan said.

Before agreeing to any cosmetic procedure, make sure you have a good understanding of the risks and benefits and also see if there are other treatments available that do not require surgery.