A US Woman Chose Turkey for a Hair Transplant After US Prices Topped $13,000

Nicole Ethridge, 39, told Business Insider she looked into a hair transplant in the US but found prices upward of $13,000, which was outside her budget. She ultimately chose Turkey after researching options abroad and seeing testimonials from patients who looked like her.

Her Istanbul treatment was quoted at $2,600, and she said she paid 50% as an influencer; flights cost an additional $1,250. For readers weighing medical travel, the clear takeaway is to compare the full cost, not just the procedure price.

Ethridge said her hair had always been thin, but she noticed more loss after the birth of her daughter, now 19. A dermatologist diagnosed traction alopecia, which Business Insider described as sometimes caused by tight hairstyles and other things that pull on hair.

She wore wigs that cost $300 to $700 and said she went through as many as nine a year. She later made and sold wigs, but said she still wanted her real, natural hair back.

Ethridge worked with an international facilitator, Doctours, which connected her with a clinic and arranged treatment and hotel accommodation. She traveled in August 2025 and spent four days in Istanbul.

She said the only painful parts were the injections used to numb her scalp. The medical team extracted individual follicles from the back of her head and moved them to the problem area, and she chose to have her head fully shaved beforehand.

Ethridge said her hair began growing back within four months, but the major change came around the six-month mark. She said she started going out without a wig for the first time in nearly 20 years and now loves her pixie-length hair.

She and her fiancé are getting married next year, and she told Business Insider she is happy thinking she will have a nice head of hair for the wedding. The practical takeaway for anyone considering a similar route is to research clinics carefully, plan for travel and aftercare, and be realistic that visible results can take months.