Controversial surgeon Daniel Lanzer says he’ll stop procedures

Cosmetic surgeon and social media star Dr Daniel Lanzer has given a legally enforceable undertaking to stop practising medicine in Australia.

The shock announcement on Friday night from the national health regulator followed a media investigation on Monday by the Sydney Morning Herald, The Age and ABC’s Four Corners which uncovered allegations of troubling practices across Dr Lanzer’s network, including serious hygiene and safety breaches, and multiple examples of botched procedures that have left patients in extreme pain and requiring further medical treatment.

In a statement, the Australian Health Practitioner Agency (AHPRA) said the Medical Board accepted an undertaking from Dr Lanzer that he would not practise as a medical practitioner, in any form, in Australia.

It said its inquiries into Dr Lanzer’s clinics were ongoing but due to privacy provisions it was unable to provide further comment.

State regulators including Victoria have also launched investigations.

Earlier in the day Dr Lanzer, who is one of the most followed cosmetic surgeons in the world with millions of TikTok followers and his own TV show, removed the content from his TikTok account. Other doctors in the practice also removed content or shut down accounts; some had hundreds of thousands of followers.

Dr Lanzer told staff earlier in the day via WhatsApp that he was enjoying a break and that he wanted to clear his name of “these ridiculous accusations.” He told them “We will have our day.”

Dr Lanzer’s clinics in Sydney and Melbourne have closed with a call centre in the Philippines saying Melbourne may not open for a year.

Since the stories broke, more than 80 patients have come forward with harrowing stories of their experiences at the clinics.

He tried to stop the stories by taking urgent Federal Court action, which he lost.

Dr Lanzer, who owns day hospitals in Melbourne and Brisbane and facilities in Sydney and Perth, is a dermatologist who has made a fortune practising cosmetic procedures including tummy tucks, liposuction, Brazilian butt lifts, mini face lifts and breast implants.

But some questionable behaviours were exposed in audio recordings and videos to his staff. In one audio message he tells staff, “You never tell a patient ‘you’re infected’, no …”

Other allegations raised in the media investigation included a dangerous lack of care while performing liposuction, the removal of 10 litres of fat and fluids from liposuction patients in one procedure, which is considered dangerous and twice the amount considered safe, and staff being asked to store human fat in their fridges at home to avoid questions from regulators during an inspection.

One video shows two of Dr Lanzer’s doctors dancing and singing while performing liposuction procedures on an unconscious patient.

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