The Needle and the Damage Done-bookcover

By: Dr Patrick Treacy

The Needle and the Damage Done

Pages: 398 Ratings: 4.8
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The Needle and the Damage Done is the story of a boy from a small Irish village who became an adventurer, multi-award-winning doctor and physician to the stars. Part travelogue, part thriller, part celebrity tell-all, the memoir is a whirlwind of adventure and a fascinating insight into the colourful life of Dr Patrick Treacy.

Cosmetic doctor Patrick Treacy grew up in rural Northern Ireland during The Troubles. Determined to become a doctor, he raised money for medical school in Dublin by smuggling cars from Germany to Turkey. He studied biochemistry at Queens University Belfast and medicine at the Royal College of Surgeons. While working in a Dublin hospital, he was accidentally jabbed with a needle from an HIV patient. He took blood test after blood test for many years until he was confirmed negative. Initially overwhelmed by the experience, he moved to New Zealand, away from everyone who knew what he was going through: his girlfriend and his colleagues. Thus, he began a peripatetic existence, working as a doctor around the world. In Saddam Hussein’s Baghdad, Treacy was arrested and imprisoned, spending days wondering whether he was going to be hanged as a spy. He worked as a ship’s surgeon in California and with the Royal Flying Doctor Service in Australia. On returning to Dublin, Treacy set up the Ailesbury Clinic where he pioneered the emergent field of cosmetic dermatology, championing treatments regarding the use of botulinum toxin and dermal fillers. His award-winning research brought him numerous international accolades and many celebrity patients, including the King of Pop himself, Michael Jackson, who came flocking to his door.

Central to this memoir is Treacy’s personal journey: his efforts to escape the conflict of The Troubles, coping with the fear that he may have contracted HIV, getting over his lost love and surviving the crippling Irish recession. Most of all, it gives us a fascinating insight into his award-winning research on the influence of Botox ® on the brain and how he developed protocols to reverse the damage being done to patient’s faces as a result of the complications of dermal fillers.

Dr Treacy was awarded the “Top Aesthetic Practitioner in the World 2019” at the MyFaceMyBody Global Awards (Las Vegas). He won the ‘Doctor of the Year’ UK 2019 (Las Vegas) and ‘Doctor of the Year’ UK and Ireland 2018 at the Safety in Beauty Diamond Award (London). He won the Royal Society of Medicine (London) Research Poster Award 2019. He is among a few doctors in the world to have won the coveted AMEC Trophy three times (Paris 2014 and 2016, Monaco 2019) for varied research relating to the use of stem cells and platelets in treating cancer cachexia and reversing skin necrosis. He won the MyFaceMyBody Trophy in London (2016) for medical research and was Highly Commended (London 2012 and 2013) for studies relating to the use of platelet-rich plasma, growth signalling factors and 633nm red light in both facial rejuvenation and hair transplant. These types of procedures are now popularised and being used by clinicians all around the world. He was given the CCME Medal for “Excellence in contributions to Aesthetic Medicine” (Mexico 2016) and was Highly Commended in “Doctor of the Year” Category (London 2016).

He is recognised as one of the most influential aesthetic practitioners in the world being named for the third time amongst the MyFaceMyBody “Ultimate 100 Global Aesthetic Leaders” (Las Vegas 2019, Los Angeles 2018, London 2017). He received the MyFaceMyBody Specialist Award (London 2018) for research contributions to the field of Aesthetic Medicine. He was awarded a Laureate in Aesthetic Medicine by the Azerbaijani College of Medicine and given the Beauty & Anti-Ageing Trophy (Baku 2017) for contributions to the field of Aesthetic Medicine. He was awarded the 1st AIDA Trophy for his research in Aesthetic Medicine (Abu Dhabi 2017). His research has strongly influenced this specialist area where he has developed global protocols relating to dermal filler complications and wound healing, as well as pioneering techniques for HIV facial lipodystrophy facial endoprostheses and radiosurgery venous thermocoagulation. He won both the “Irish Healthcare Award for Medical Research” (Dublin 2017) and the “British College of Aesthetic Medicine Award for Medical Research” (London 2017).

Dr Treacy was Chairman of the Organising Committee of Royal Society of Medicine (London) Aesthetic Congress 2019, Chairman of the Irish Association of Cosmetic Doctors, and the Irish Representative of the British Association of Cosmetic Medicine. He serves on the editorial boards of five international aesthetic journals. He is author and co-author of many articles in peer-reviewed scientific journals and has contributed to chapters of medical books.

Dr Treacy is a fellow of the Royal Society of Medicine and the Royal Society of Arts (London). He is Chairman of the Ailesbury Humanitarian Foundation and is the driving force behind countless humanitarian efforts that impact the lives of children in communities across Africa, Haiti, and the Third World. To this end, he has opened orphanages in Monrovia, Liberia, and Mirebalais, Haiti. He practices cosmetic medicine in his clinics in Dublin and Cork. He is an advanced aesthetic trainer and has trained over 3,500 doctors and nurses from around the world. He has featured on CNN, Dr Drew, RTÉ, TV3, Sky News, BBC, and Newsweek.

Customer Reviews
4.8
13 reviews
13 reviews
  • Shanaya

    An engrossing memoir as well as a lively treatise on what extraordinary grace under extraordinary pressure looks like.

    Dr Treacy’s book is a rollercoaster ride about his life. Through this book, you will know about his talent, hardwork, dedication and honesty. Patrick is surely the most entertaining guide you’ll find. He introduces us to the difference places and to some of the folks he meets along the way. His life experiences brought him to this level and his journey is really inspiring and motivating. He’s incredibly articulate when describing the mundane moments of travel that we often glaze over in memory. It’s not just about the moments of grandeur—every little element is part of the whole experience.

    Through this book, he also taught us the importance of stepping outside your comfort zone as a means to growth.
    I would like to invite you all to take a copy of this one-off with you, and cultivate your sense of curiosity with every step—who knows where it might lead you?
    This book will give you the push you need to face your fears and see the world all by yourself.

  • Shenzoo


    This book has incredible depth. You learn about Dr. Treacy, his struggles and how he got where he is today, you learn about so many places he has “adventured” with graphic representation! Your learn about his accomplishments! This is what I’d call a complete book!

    This is an extraordinary true story, I felt that I was along for the ride and I am thankful that Dr. Treacy had the forethought to journal his experiences. Intriguing and inspiring! A true story I’d not heard before but lapped up eagerly due to the author’s beautifully written narrative.

    I loved this book! It’s a wonderful non-fiction account of Dr. Patrick Treacy achievements and adventures across many countries. My favourite part about this book? The pictures ofcourse! This book is filled with pictures of Dr. Patrick’s travel to so many wonderful places.

    I absolutely loved this book; each day was a new adventure for me and Dr. Treacy. If you love travelling - and a thoroughly interesting story of a man's courage amid adversity - you'll love this book. You will love the adventures and you will not want to put the book down, it is that good. I recommend it.

  • Patrick Keenan

    This book, The Needle and The Damage Done, is written by my friend Dr Patrick Treacy and tells his amazing life story, from the earlier years growing up in rural Ireland, to his later world travels. The memoir details his achievements and contributions to medicine, as well as his various humanitarian activities both in Haiti and many African countries. As a youngster, he already displayed some genius winning awards as a teenager and he was fortunate to be able to turn the dreams we discussed as children into reality, through sheer effort and dedication.

    In the early chapters, he writes about his hard-working entrepreneurial parents trying to support a large Catholic family in the small border village of Garrison, N. Ireland with memories strewn around his father’s garage of broken gramophone springs and latter -day acetylene lamps. This was a period of major conflict in Fermanagh, later known to the world as ‘The Troubles’, and the writer lets us know the devastating impact this had on everyone, including himself. In later chapters, he engages the reader with adventures from his back packing travels, through Africa and the Middle East, and how these precious experiences give him a huge insight to the cultures and politics… a knowledge that I believe would entitle him to be an advisor to some of our Global Leaders. He relates to us some of the entrepreneurial activities he was forced to use to fund his medical degree, and when armed with his qualifications, some wonderful stories about the patients he later began to treat. His stories take us from a dusty trail in the dying sunset of a small African village to the arched reed houses of the Iraqi Marsh Arabs. Then he becomes a ship’s physician on the exotic Carnival Cruise Lines to being a sought-after celebrity doctor to the rich and famous. He also shares about some of his many humanitarian activities – rushing to NYC after 911 to work in the hospitals and more recently in the earthquake-stricken Haiti.
    In the later chapters, he tells us about a plethora of novel techniques that he helped develop in aesthetic medicine, many of which are now used around the world by his colleagues. This research brought him many international awards and he becomes a highly acclaimed lecturer on the global stage.

    This frankly written story by Dr Treacy, reminds us that with a willingness to work hard and the humility to learn from and support our fellow man, we can turn our dreams into reality and that everything is possible in the journey of life. I must conclude my review, by saying that in knowing Dr Treacy personally, I can assure his readers that in this engrossing book, he is sharing his life story, but be assured his future achievements will probably be the basis of a later novel. .

  • Laura Hawryluck

    The path to becoming a doctor is one that is increasingly tightly scripted and narrow with certain expectations to be met to both gain entry to medical school and then to succeed in one’s chosen field. His journey into medicine to become the top Aesthetic Doctor in the World is entertaining, honest, and shows what living a remarkable breadth of experiences can bring to patient care and to what it is to be a doctor. As a physician myself I believe this book has a lot to teach those who select and those who mentor others in medicine. What I absolutely love about this book is that Dr Treacy shows us the real value and importance of being open to life’s possibilities; to exploring opportunities and to have a curious, well-informed mind to be able to see the potential of innovative treatments to help people. His focus on improving outcomes from complications taught me a lot and shows a real care for people he treats and a real dedication to helping others. His humanitarian work and his clear understanding of and tireless work on how aesthetics can help those regain confidence and ability to engage with the world while or after struggling with the effects of serious illnesses is heartwarming.

    He has a fascinating ability to describe the people he has met and places his life, journey has taken him and in this book his descriptions of his travels brings his readers right there with him- sharing his love of new cultures, sights and sounds and his enjoyment and celebration of diversity, and new experiences.

    For people interested in aesthetics this a fascinating read. For those who discount the value aesthetics can bring to someone’s life you should read this book. I am really looking forward to Dr Treacy’s upcoming books Living History of Medicine and Living History of Aesthetic Medicine.

  • Christopher Rowland Payne

    The Evolution of Aesthetic Medicine. By Dr Patrick Treacey. Austin Macauley Publishers, London 2022.

    Patrick Tracey is truly a pioneer of aesthetic medicine and has been personally responsible for many advances in the field. This book recounts not only his own enormous contribution but also the full story of aesthetic medicine.

    Did you know that the exciting story of the discovery of cosmeceuticals begins with the Mongol Hordes and did you know that Louis Pasteur and Charles Darwin influenced the development of aesthetic botulinum?

    The book begins with the history of botulinum, fillers and lasers. Then come the intriguing stories of chemical peels, fat removal, hair transplant and thread lifting. The story of vitamin D is particularly engagingly recounted. After a whirl through a number of other subjects, it ends with a well referenced bibliography.

    The author‘s fluidity and style of writing are most engaging and, as one reads, one has the feeling of being in the same room with him, as if he is speaking personally to the reader.

    Patrick Tracey is particularly well placed to be the one to write this story and this is clear from the photographs, which show that he has personally known many of the personalies about whom he writes.

    For anyone interested in our specialty and its origins, this is a book you will want to read. It will make a perfect present for a colleague or a delightful companion on a long journey to a distant holiday or, in Patrick’s case, a long journey to another continent, another congress and indubitably another well deserved accolade presented by justifiably impressed peers.

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