A TikTok-famous doctor with over 13 million followers was barred from performing surgery in Australia

• Dr. Daniel Aronov has reportedly been barred from performing cosmetic surgery.
• Aronov had 13 million followers on TikTok before his account disappeared.

Dr. Daniel Aronov, a cosmetic surgeon and TikTok star, has been barred from performing cosmetic surgery in Australia, The Sydney Morning Herald reported.

Aronov, who amassed over 13 million followers on TikTok for his skits, dances, and educational content about medicine, as well as videos that showed some of his procedures, was barred from performing all kinds of cosmetic surgeries and ordered by the Australian Health Practitioner Regulation Agency (AHPRA) to remove his social-media posts, according to The Herald.

His TikTok account vanished two weeks ago, according to the Australian Broadcasting Corp.'s "Four Corners" investigative series. His Instagram account, where he had over 500,000 followers, and his OnlyFans page have also been taken down. This followed AHPRA orders to remove all material on social media that related to cosmetic and surgical procedures, Newsweek reported.

The AHPRA works with 15 of Australia's national boards to regulate the country's registered health practitioners. One of its purposes is to manage complaints and concerns raised about health practitioners, its website says.

The ban follows controversy surrounding the owner of the Melbourne clinic Aronov worked at, run by Dr. Daniel Lanzer. A joint investigation documentary in October by the Australian publications The Sydney Morning Herald, The Age, and the Australian Broadcasting Corp.'s "Four Corners" reported allegations of medical misconduct, with multiple patients saying botched surgeries left them with pain or seeking further treatments.

One patient named Donna Patterson said in the documentary that she signed up for Lanzer's breast-liposuction procedure after seeing him on TV. She said it seemed like a less-invasive alternative to breast-reduction surgery. But she said she was left with excruciating pain for two years and had to undergo corrective surgery.

Patterson successfully sued Lanzer in 2002, and he was ordered to pay damages, according to the Australian Broadcasting Corp.

"In my 30-year career, I've never had a single ruling or recommendation against me regarding my method of surgery or my patient care by any regulator," Lanzer said in a video statement in the documentary. The AHPRA launched an investigation into Lanzer shortly after the documentary aired. A statement on the AHPRA website on October 30 said Lanzer had agreed not to practice medicine in Australia while the investigation continued.

In the aftermath of the documentary, Aronov, a former employee at one of Lanzer's clinics, also came under scrutiny from his patients.

One patient named Jackie told the Australian news show "A Current Affair" she felt "traumatized" after a procedure to remove excess fat around her jaw and neck, during which she was awake. Chin liposuction can be done with either local or general anesthesia, but a Self investigation into "awake" procedures found that while they were advertised as giving the patient more control, they could be a way for clinics to cut corners — such as not having to front the cost of an anesthesiologist.

"It's etched into my mind because I was lying there shaking, in shock, in pain, and just traumatized as to what he had just done to me, and he was on the other side of the door doing a TikTok video," Jackie told "A Current Affair." "I'm lying there as their patient, behind the door, feeling like I'm going to die, and there he was entertaining the public." Jackie also alleged the procedure left her with nerve damage.

Aronov told "A Current Affair" in a news segment on November 24 he had resigned from his position and "taken some time off."

"A Current Affair" reported that through a lawyer, he said, "It would be inappropriate for me to comment on any matters that are currently the subject of any AHPRA inquiry."

During Aronov's ban from surgery, he is allowed to practice as a general practitioner if he's supervised by an AHPRA-approved supervisor, according to the Australian Broadcasting Corp.

Lanzer, Aronov, and the AHPRA did not immediately respond to Insider's requests for comment.

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