Considering HT. Need advice.

[Viper5]

So here's where I'm at:

I'm 31/m and about 3 years ago my g/f started noticing my crown was losing its fullness. I actually chalked it up to a scar I have on my head near that area and didn't really let it bother me. Now we are no longer together and it's gotten worse and I am having a hard time getting back on the scene. I would consider myself NW 3-4 but I'll post recent pics below.

So I started researching what could be done 6 mo. after having it brought to my attention and started taking minox at 1mL 2x daily. I was pretty consistent and after 6 months I wasn't really seeing anything improve and didn't like to keep having that crap in my hair/dry flaky skin/messy pillow cases and such so I halted use.

My beard has also never grown in right. It's not patchy, but rather it's just missing a good area on both sides. This has always looked funny and caused me to be clean shaven but I always thought I would look much better with a trimmed beard.

I live in Fl and at the beginning of 2016 I spoke with Dr. Charles about a possible HT. It was much more expensive than I was prepared for but he was able to give me a prescription for Fin which I took for a couple weeks before I started freaking out about side effects. Maybe it was the drug or just in my head but either way I can't see myself taking that stuff.

Fast forward to now and I've spoken with two other doctors recently (Dr Syed and a sales guy at Bassin Center, Dr. Slusher would perform HT), both of which are in Orlando, claim I need 2500, and offer Neograph. I am unsure if either is considered "good" because they will always provide patient success photos, stories, etc...

I've also resumed minox for the past few months and also on face this time but still not seeing improvement. Something else worth mentioning is I have also been using RU58841 every night in an attempt to block DHT receptors. I don't think I've ever shed a lot at any one time so it's hard for me to gauge if it's helping.

As for the beard I was told 1000 and 1500 graphs from Syed and Bassin, respectively.

Dr Syed says he also injects PRP w/Acell while Dr. Slusher just does PRP at time of HT.

Additionally, Dr. Syed is offering @ 2.99/graph and Bassin came down to 3.99 to be competitive and claim that they do much better work and that other patients have come in from Syed and they have had to "clean up". Bassin also says I wouldn't need to take drugs after HT, just come in every few years for another PRP w/Acell injection. The office at Bassin does seem much nicer as well. I've been told I am lucky to have great donor hair as well for what it's worth. I'm really confused with where to go from here and any advice would be greatly appreciated.

Sorry for the long post but wanted to be reasonably thorough.

[Hairbrain]

Best advice anyone could give you at this time is to slow down! Anytime a HT transplant surgeon is willing to bargain his/her price is a big red flag. I really think you should do much more research, forget about costs for now. Getting a hair transplant is a serious decision that will change the rest of your life, for better or worse. If your looking for a cheap hair transplant that's more than likely exactly what you will get. Believe me the hair loss your suffering from now will not compare to sub-par or bad results that are more common than not, which you could easily end up with. I've been on both sides of that fence and learned my lessons the hard way. What certifications or online forum recommendations do the doctors you have spoken to have? Have you met or spoken to anyone personally that has had a transplant from either of those doctors? And please read this article on Neograft http://www.thebaldtruth.com/hair-tra...-buyer-beware/ The fact you state you are talking to a "sales" guy is in itself a bit troubling to me. You should not ever be "sold" or talked into a hair transplant. EVER!! Don't fall for the whole ACELL/PRP add on either. Your transplanted grafts will not rely on either on of those to grow. They may or may not have their benefits (many top surgeons dont use either one) but should never be a determining factor of where or who you get your surgery from. Although you may think Dr. Charles was a quoting you a high price believe me there is reason. Moving forward and if your serious about getting a transplant I strongly encourage you to consult with other IAHRS recommended surgeons. It would be better to wait, save your money, or figure out how to finance your transplant with a surgeon that has consistent results time after time, is willing to share consistent before and after photos or preferably videos from their own clinic of patients they actually worked on, and allow you to meet and speak with a number of patients from their clinic.
Second of all you are willing to keep using RU58841 that is not recognized by the FDA as a viable hair loss treatment and quite using finasteride because of potential perceived sides. Sides with finasteride are very rare. There are more potential listed sides on a bottle of Tylenol then there are with finasteride. I along with many here on this forum have used it for years and never even noticed any sides what so ever. Be careful what you read out there, if your looking for it you will find it....Lots of unproven, undocumented and just plane wrong information out there posted about this drug that has and continues to help millions.
One thing I will agree on, it appears you do have great available donor. So don't waist it, your only allowed to use each follicle once!