Dr.
Gwen Maxwell

Dr. Gwen Maxwell is a board-certified plastic surgeon who has over 20 years of experience. Dr. Maxwell was the first woman plastic surgeon in Tucson, and is widely recognized in the community for her kind and caring demeanor, attention to detail, and precision.

Dr. Maxwell was raised in Bisbee, Arizona, where four generations of her family worked in the mining industry. This taught her the value of diligence and hard work. Growing up, she spent many hours sewing her own clothes, learning to appreciate accuracy, artistry, and a sense of perfectionism. “I could sew for 10 hours straight without stopping, making sure every seam and every top stitching was done with perfect accuracy,” she explains.

Following her education and training, Dr. Maxwell returned to Arizona to practice. She began accepting patients who were her mother’s referrals requesting facelifts. Her diligence and focus yielded excellent results, and word-of-mouth quickly spread to expand her clientele. Soon, Dr. Maxwell’s practice was busy, and the business was thriving. Reviews from Dr. Maxwell’s previous patients speak to her kind attentiveness and excellent results. Regarding her journey through years of experience in plastic surgery, Dr. Maxwell says “when you first start out, everything feels like a challenge. Now, the ones with subtlety and nuance have become my new favorites, because they’re the most challenging and rewarding.”

Dr. Maxwell attended the New Mexico School of Medicine, where she graduated first in her class. She then completed residency training in Michigan and a fellowship in Virginia. Through residency, she found the cosmetic procedures to be the most interesting and was especially fascinated by reconstructive surgeries. During these experiences, Dr. Maxwell found value in helping women affected by breast cancer in particular.

Following her education and training, Dr. Maxwell earned board certification through the American Board of Plastic Surgery. She is a fellow of the American College of Surgeons, a member of the American Society of Plastic Surgeons, and a member of the American Society for Aesthetic Plastic Surgery.

Dr. Maxwell opened Maxwell Aesthetics in 1997. Through years of experience, Dr. Maxwell has increasingly been drawn to more intricate and complex procedures that are less routine, which allow her to become laser-focused and attentive to the small details that yield the best possible results. She says “a lot of plastic surgery is money motivated, but what many do not realize is that, really, surgery is quite invasive. Cosmetic surgery is changing the way someone looks on the outside. Everything I do, the patient sees, so it’s easy for some physicians to not see themselves as doctors, but I see myself as a doctor first. Patients that are taking a purely elective surgery that changes their outward physical appearance means I have no room for error, I have no room to not primarily be a doctor, and treating patients the way they should be treated is of utmost importance to me.”