Matthew Ashbach, MD

I had been using dermal fillers for 5 years with amazing results until 10/12/2020 when my doctor injected a blood vessel, melting my face and ruining my career as a singer and model.

This complication was never discussed nor listed on the only informed consent form I ever signed at his office back in 2016, so when it happened, I had no idea it was an emergency, and when I was diagnosed the next day, I thought it may have been the first time it ever happened to anyone. My doctor seemed just as surprised and confused as I was, and had no idea how severe this injury was or how to properly treat it. I also didn't find out until much later that the calcium based filler I preferred because of how much longer it lasted, was not reversable in the event of this catastrophic accidental injection and would cause necrosis and permanent damage to my face. My doctor had me believing that this was gonna get worse before it got better, but that in a few weeks, the scabs would heal and come off, and we could smooth out any bumpy skin underneath with lasers. He and his dermatologist wife assured me it was temporary and that they were gonna fix everything for me, so I had nothing to worry about. I believed everything they said, did everything they told me to do, and assumed I would go back to my normal life in a few weeks, so I didn't seek out other medical care at the time.

Imagine my surprise and terror over the next few weeks as I watched in slow motion while my face cooked and bubbled like a pizza in a locked oven, then burned to a crisp and broke off in my hands. The pain was unbearable and everything happening outside my face, happened inside my face too. My nasal passages shriveled and nose bent to the left, no longer having a nostril there to support it. This has caused all kinds of physical issues with my breathing, which of course affects my singing and performing on stage and in front of the camera. If I didn't have a husband who loves me for who I am and Medical Art Prosthetics to create me a new nostril and nasal passage, I likely would not have survived this life-changing injury and all the horror that came along with it.

There is so much more to this story, I could write a novel (and probably will!), but first things first, I have to get this warning out there to anyone still using Radiesse or any calcium based filler. Most doctors include this in a lengthy consent form and have this discussion and re-sign that document at least once a year, but I wasn't so lucky. Everything you read online says WHEN INJECTED INCORRECTLY, you can block a blood vessel and experience something this horrific, but according to all the doctors I've talked to about this since my injury, it is 100% CHANCE, and can happen to any doctor, no matter how talented, at least once in every thousand injections. That's A LOT.

If I had known better at the time, I never would have used Radiesse, and would not have trusted Dr. Matthew Ashbach of Western Washington Medical Group, or his wife Dr. Heather Rogers of Modern Dermatology in Seattle to treat and care for me. I will be paying the price for their mistakes for the rest of my life.