Before you book a hair transplant.

A transplant moves hair from a donor area to a recipient area. It doesn't diagnose sudden shedding, treat an inflamed scalp, or resolve every cause of loss. If your change is sudden, patchy, painful or unexplained, medical assessment should come before surgical planning — any reputable surgeon will want the same.

Transplanted hair and the existing hair around it have different futures. If the surrounding hair keeps thinning, the long-term appearance changes — which is why good surgical clinics discuss stabilising loss (with medication or supportive treatments) before or alongside surgery. Ask how the clinic has considered your likely pattern over years, not just the immediate hairline.

Donor hair is finite. Ask how density and quality were assessed, what can safely be taken, what must be preserved for the future, and what the plan is if loss continues. A big advertised graft number is not automatically a better plan — sometimes it's the opposite.

Ask for the name and professional registration of the doctor responsible. Ask which stages they personally perform, which are delegated, who is present on the day, and who you contact if there's a complication. A quality clinic answers all of this gladly; reluctance is itself an answer.

Confirm the facility, the country and the regulatory arrangements before paying any deposit. Travelling for surgery — Turkey being the most advertised route — can be done well, but the questions sharpen: who provides follow-up once you're home, how are urgent concerns handled from another country, and what does revision cost if it's needed? The headline price is only comparable once aftercare and revision are included on both sides.

A natural hairline, sensible density and preserved donor supply may matter more than the maximum graft count. Ask the clinic to explain the design, its limits, and what it can't achieve. Be cautious with guarantees, and with before/after photography that isn't taken in comparable lighting and angles — ask how theirs is taken.

Consultation, procedure, medicines, travel, accommodation, aftercare, reviews, and any later corrective work. A procedure price is only meaningful once the inclusions and responsibilities are clear — this is where "cheap" and "expensive" quotes often swap places.

A transplant doesn't stop pattern loss. Ask whether established treatment or monitoring has been discussed for your existing hair, and whether that advice comes from someone qualified to give it. Don't start or stop prescribed treatment on the strength of website copy — including ours.

PRP doesn't replace a transplant and can't move hair into a bare area. Some clinics discuss it as a supportive option for existing hair or around transplant care; protocols and evidence vary. It should be recommended for a stated reason, not added automatically as an expensive extra — that applies to us as much as anyone.

A trustworthy clinic must be prepared to say no. Ask what would make the surgeon advise against surgery, whether a second opinion is sensible, and what the non-surgical routes could achieve — medication, supportive treatments, scalp micropigmentation, hair systems, styling, or deciding you're fine as you are. All of those are valid outcomes.