Suzanne Somers, 63, will not admit to plastic surgery and only cops to using Botox despite the fact that her face is tight as a drum. Last month, The Daily Beast ran an excellent expose on Somers’ new book claiming to offer alternative cancer treatments, Knockout: Interviews with Doctors Who Are Curing Cancer–And How to Prevent Getting It in the First Place. They quoted cancer experts who debunked a lot of the claims in Somers’ book, with many calling her assertions dangerous and potentially deadly for patients who may opt for unproven experimental methods instead of traditional clinical treatments. Some of the doctors touted in Somers’ book have been outed as quacks. One is facing indictments for fraud after bilking people out of their life savings with promises of a miracle cure.
The National Enquirer reports that Somers’ plans to start touting stem cells for use in cosmetic procedures. She’ll undergo a face and breast lift using a new stem cell method and will start evangelizing it as an anti-aging treatment. I doubt she’ll ever admit to using traditional plastic surgery as well, though. The Daily Beast quoted a plastic surgeon who looked at before and after photos of Somers as saying “I am fairly certain that she has had a face lift, some fillers, and eyelid surgery.”
Suzanne Somers is getting a face-lift - but she’s using a bizarre new procedure that utilizes stem cells, the Enquirer has learned.
The former “Three’s Company” star is telling pals she plans to undergo the process in February and intends to become the poster girl for the cutting-edge procedure.
“Suzanne is incredibly enthusiastic about the use of stem cells to beat aging,” a family friend told the Enquirer. “She thinks stem celsl are the new frontier and she’s determined to spread the word.”
Suzanne, 63, is planning to get both a face and breast lift using the new technique, says the friends.
“She’s starting a new book on anti-aging techniques using stem cells, and she’s going to have her own procedures photographed to emphasize the ‘before’ and ‘after’ benefits.
“She’s already talked to Larry King about making an appearance on his show to promote the project.”
[From The National Enquirer, print edition, December 21, 2009]
I did some light research on this “stem cell facelift,” and it basically involves using a patient’s own “adult stem cells” from their stomach fat, processing it somehow to extract the stem cells, then re-mixing them with some fat and injecting into the face. It’s touted as a “non surgical facelift” because it involves only injections and no cutting. It costs about $5,000 and takes about an hour under local anesthesia. Recovery is about a week. Somehow the stem cells generate new tissue in the face that is tighter and younger-looking. There’s little chance that the patient might reject the cells because they’re from the patient and not a donor. Some of the before and after photos I’ve seen make it look like this works, although you can’t verify if they’re altered photos or if the patients had a stem cell or traditional facelift. (Here’s a video that explains stem cell facelifts.)
At least with this latest health trend Somers doesn’t have the potential to do much harm. The worst that can happen is that someone wastes their money. There are risks with all surgery but this sounds kind of benign, especially when compared to a regular face lift. Maybe Somers should stick to promoting plastic surgery and quit trying to give health advice. I know I’d rather inject my own fat and stem cells into my face than a chemical or toxin. It’s also a lot safer than opting out of chemotherapy treatment for cancer because some former actress told me to try enzymes instead.
Suzanne Somers is shown on 12/20/09 and 11/10/09. Credit: Johnny Louis/WENN.com
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