The trim and physically fit professional says he would bet money no one can tell he had plastic surgery -- not even his own family.

Two years ago, the 50-year-old had neck liposuction because he hated the appearance of his jiggly double chin, a genetic trait inherited from his father.

"I saw my dad, who is 35 years older than me, and he has this huge jiggly thing hanging down and I didn't want that happening to me, so I pre-empted that," he says. (He asked to remain anonymous because of the stigma surrounding plastic surgery). "I've been self-conscious about my fat face all my life. My double chin just added to my baby face because it rounded out at the bottom. But now I have a jaw. I feel normal."

Many Canadians are placing their bets on cosmetic surgery, hoping to hit the jackpot with the perfect, or at least more youthful, post-op appearance. And although the stakes can be high -- procedures can cost thousands of dollars -- demand hardly slowed even during the worst days of the recession.

According to the American Society for Aesthetic Plastic Surgery -- the leading professional organization of plastic surgeons certified by the American Board of Plastic Surgery, with 2,400 members in the U.S., Canada and many other countries -- almost 10 million cosmetic surgical and non-surgical procedures were performed in the United States in 2009, just a two-per-cent drop from the year before. (No Canadian figures were available).