AT THE CUTTING EDGE
Cosmetic surgery is a growth medical industry and practitioners like Daniel Lanzer enjoy giving ordinary people the chance to improve on nature.
By Vikki Kyriakopoulos.

Cosmetic surgery has become one of the boom areas of the medical sector, with many borrowing money to get their faces rejuvenated or fat removed.

The advent of the laser has seen a much broader use of cosmetic procedures by medical practitioners and specialist cosmetic surgeons.

"It’s a booming industry", says dermatologist and cosmetic surgeon Daniel Lanzer who estimates thousands of doctors in Australia are performing as nose jobs to GP's removing veins.

Cosmetic surgery, a broad term for a range of invasive and non-invasive procedures, is not regulated in Australia. The demarcation over who is qualified to do which procedure is a point of much contention, with a recent ministerial inquiry in NSW recommending a national credentialing council for practitioners.

While certain operations such as breast implants and face-lifts are restricted to qualified plastic surgeons, others who are accredited to operate in private hospitals are able to perform other procedures.

Plastic surgeons must complete a medical degree, then undergo four to six years’ surgical training, specialising in plastic and reconstructive surgery.

Lanzer spent 12 years training as a Doctor and Dermatologist, specialising in skin diseases, followed by laser and liposuction training in the United States.

"You have to spend some period of time in America and you need to go back regularly to keep up your training", Lanzer says.

Over the past 12 years, Lanzer has built up his Toorak-based practice and a national profile as a leading laser and liposuction specialist, writing columns in Womens magazines and appearing on television programs.

"It’s very enjoyable and satisfying work but if you want to do cosmetic surgery properly, you need a significant infrastructure of staff, equipment and a commitment to ongoing training".

As well as the technical skills, Lanzer believes a cosmetic surgeon a certain personality. "It’s very important to be empathetic", he says.

"The thing I enjoy about it is that you are taking something that is clearly upsetting the person and doing a dramatic change so the patient suddenly has a new level of confidence".

Despite its growing popularity, cosmetic surgery still carries a stigma. "A lot of society looks down on cosmetic surgery; people are worried about their looks, but I don’t think there is anything wrong with someone wanting to improve themselves and their self-esteem".

"Society demands that people look good and feel good and I don’t believe it’s any different to going out and buying a nice dress or a nice piece of jewellery to make yourself feel better and more confident".

The most common procedure in Australia and around the world is liposuction, in particular a method discovered 10 years ago which involves pumping fluid into the fat to make it safer and easier to remove.

"I did one (operation) yesterday where we removed 16 litres of fluid and fat", Lanzer says.
Surprisingly, Lanzer says the risks of being sued and the cost of medical indemnity are no greater than other specialist areas of medicine.

"Cosmetic surgeons don’t have more litigation than anyone else and certainly less than obstetricians and paediatricians", says Lanzer.

"We take a lot of photos and have consent forms signed and follow them up very carefully. Even if the risk is one in a million, it’s the Doctors responsibility to tell the patient of the risk".

While cosmetic surgery was once the domain of the rich and famous, Lanzer says about 98% of his patients are ‘Ordinary Australians’."In the past cosmetic surgery was a lot more expensive where as now it’s the same sort of budget as holiday", he says. "A lot of people borrow money to do it".

• Dr Lanzer continues his interest in Dermatology as well. He uses glycolic peels for facial pigmentation and acne.
• PUVA ultraviolet treatment for psoriasis, eczema and hand and foot dermatitis.
• Skin cancer therapy and monitoring using computer photography.