Alana Boone, 26, from Belgium, booked dental surgery with a company in Turkey on Facebook. She ended up spending a staggering £8,400 but has no teeth to show for it
A young woman who was left toothless following a botched surgery in Turkey has urged people against booking life-changing treatment abroad.
Alana Boone, from Gavere, Belgium, is warning others to “think twice” before jetting off overseas to get dental surgery. She issued the alert after a simple treatment to get crowns ( a tooth-shaped cap ), left her unable to eat or smile properly.
The 26-year-old, who had dreamt of fixing her teeth, said her mum’s friend put her in touch with the dental surgery in Turkey. But she ended up out of pocket, suffering in severe pain and with no teeth by the end of the procedure.
Alana said she contacted the company on Facebook in Janaury 2021. They reportedly told her that the procedure would cost €6,720 (£5,600) for the entire treatment plan, including hotel and plane tickets. However, she was duped and ended up spending a staggering €10,140 (£8,400).
She claims to have discussed her entire treatment plan via the social media platform and had to take photos of her teeth to send across. On July 26, the process began – starting with grinding all of her real teeth down. Then, the nightmare began.
She said: “I already started to experience pain [the next day]. It was then decided that my teeth had to be devitalised [which is removing the diseased dental pulp from inside the tooth]. Of course, this entailed extra costs [and two days later] my permanent crowns were placed. I shouted and screamed because it hurt so much.”
When travelling home on August 1, the pain persisted and only worsened. Alana then started to feel “grooves” in her mouth, coupled with a “nasty” taste. After much back and forth with the dentist in Turkey, she then visited a local practice for a second opinion – where they confirmed the treatment was a “complete failure”.
She was then faced with three options; costing between €27,400 (£22,800) and €37,800 (£31,540). Since April 2024, she has been toothless and has had eight implants out of 12 placed. While she’s still not completely pain-free, and there’s still a long road to recovery left, Alana is “relieved” that the surgeon’s “botched” work has been removed. It’s hoped her treatment will end in July 2025.
Now, she’s sharing her story to warn others. She added: “Think twice before choosing dentistry abroad. If it goes wrong, you have to solve the problem in your own country and often, you’ll end up paying three times as much.
“This situation has had a major impact; not only are my teeth gone, but my quality of life has also suffered. I miss being able to eat well and smile broadly. This is really starting to take its toll, but I will keep going.”
