She waited her entire life for her tummy tuck. She accepted the tradeoff we all discuss before surgery: exchanging loose skin for a permanent scar she’ll carry for the rest of her life. She chose what she believed was a reputable practice and trusted the process. The first photo is just 1 week after her original surgery. Months later, after a long and difficult recovery, she came to us seeking a revision. The second photo is 1 week after her revision tummy tuck. Not every patient heals perfectly. Surgery is biology, not mathematics, and some factors are simply beyond anyone’s control. But when a patient is immunocompromised—or any patient begins showing signs that healing is not going as expected—they deserve to be heard, evaluated promptly, and treated aggressively when appropriate. I often think of it like a ship at sea. A course that’s off by just one degree doesn’t seem significant at first. But if you don’t correct it early, that tiny deviation can lead to a completely ...