Medical Procedures & Treatment Costs Worldwide

Laparoscopic weight-loss surgery that reduces stomach capacity (sleeve gastrectomy) or reroutes the digestive tract (Roux-en-Y gastric bypass) to treat severe obesity.

Curative-intent cellular therapies for blood cancers: high-dose conditioning followed by infusion of donor or patient stem cells, or genetically engineered T-cells (CAR-T) that target cancer cells.

Surgical placement of silicone or saline implants behind breast tissue or the chest muscle to increase breast volume; operation takes 60-90 minutes under general anesthesia.

Surgical removal of one or both breasts to treat breast cancer, with options for skin- or nipple-sparing techniques and immediate or delayed reconstruction.

Surgical reduction mammoplasty removes excess breast tissue, fat and skin and repositions the nipple-areola complex; the operation takes 2-5 hours.

A cosmetic operation that liposuctions fat from the abdomen, flanks or thighs and re-injects it into the buttocks to reshape and enlarge them.

An implanted electronic device that converts sound into electrical signals delivered directly to the auditory nerve, restoring useful hearing in profound deafness.

Catheter-based heart procedures: angioplasty with stenting opens blocked coronary arteries, while cardiac ablation uses radiofrequency or cryo-energy to treat arrhythmias.

A titanium screw is surgically anchored into the jawbone to replace a missing tooth root and support a crown, bridge or denture.

Surgical removal or repositioning of excess upper-lid skin and lower-lid fat to refresh the periorbital area; outpatient procedure of 45 minutes to 2.5 hours.

Facial bone contouring (mandibular angle reduction, zygoma reduction and genioplasty) reshapes the jaw, cheekbones and chin into a slimmer 'V-line'; recovery to fly home is 2-3 weeks.

Surgical rhytidectomy lifts and redistributes facial skin and underlying tissue through incisions hidden at the temples and around the ears; full effect visible at 6-9 months.

A spectrum of feminising or masculinising operations - chest surgery, genital reconstruction and facial procedures - to align body with gender identity in adults with gender dysphoria.

An outpatient procedure that moves individual follicular units from the donor scalp to thinning or bald areas, using FUE or DHI techniques under local anaesthetic.

Total hip arthroplasty replaces the diseased femoral head and acetabulum with metal, ceramic and plastic components to relieve pain and restore hip movement.

Eggs are retrieved from the ovaries after hormonal stimulation, fertilised with sperm in a laboratory, and one resulting embryo is transferred into the uterus.

A donor kidney is placed in the iliac fossa with vascular and ureteric anastomoses to treat end-stage kidney disease; the native kidneys are usually left in place.

Total knee arthroplasty replaces the worn-out cartilage and bone of the knee with metal and polyethylene components to relieve arthritis pain and restore movement.

Outpatient laser refractive surgery that reshapes the cornea (LASIK flap or SMILE keyhole lenticule) to correct myopia, hyperopia and astigmatism.

Surgical suction-assisted removal of localized fat deposits using small cannulas; performed under general or local anesthesia in 1-3 hours.

Major abdominal operation that removes a diseased liver and replaces it with a deceased- or living-donor graft, indicated for end-stage liver disease and acute liver failure.

Surgical treatments for Parkinson's and tremor: deep brain stimulation implants electrodes for ongoing neuromodulation; MRI-guided focused ultrasound ablates target tissue incisionlessly.

Non-surgical, gland-preserving prostate cancer treatments that destroy tumour tissue with focused ultrasound, implanted radioactive seeds, or proton-beam radiation.

Surgical reshaping of the nasal bone and cartilage to alter size, profile or tip; performed under general anesthesia in 1.5-3 hours with a splint worn 7 days.

A robot-assisted, keyhole operation that removes the prostate and seminal vesicles to treat localised or locally advanced prostate cancer.

A major spinal operation that straightens curvature using titanium rods, pedicle screws and bone graft, often with robotic or navigation guidance for screw placement.

Orthopaedic operation that permanently joins two or more vertebrae with bone graft and instrumentation to relieve pain caused by instability, degeneration or deformity.

An umbrella of regenerative therapies using haematopoietic, mesenchymal or other adult stem cells to repair tissues, with established use in haematology and emerging use in orthopaedics and cardiology.

Surgical removal of excess abdominal skin and fat, tightening of the abdominal-wall muscles, and repositioning of the navel; recovery to full activity takes 6 weeks.

Thin porcelain or composite shells bonded onto the front of teeth to mask discolouration, chips and minor misalignment for a uniform, lighter smile.

Surgical lifting and reshaping of sagging breasts (mastopexy).

Surgical reshaping or repositioning of the ears (prominent ear correction).