I have to agree with you from experience. I had both hips done with an RFA first to burn the nerves, then stem cells put in to "grow cartiledge". I had them done on August 22, 2024. It cost me $8200 as insurance didn't cover it. The right hip had more space between the socket and femoral head but the left hip was more "bone on bone". No space. I had them both done because they were both giving me pain. The right, which had space, seemed to have worked. I presently have no pain in the right hip. The left, I still have pain, it seemed to help at first, but within a couple of months, the pain was back. They said it was the iliopsoas muscle causing me pain and sent me to physical therapy to stretch it. That didn't work. It only got worse. They gave me injections in the iliopsoas and it felt good for a day, then the pain came back. A year later, I went back to them for the left hip and they decided I needed another stem cell treatment and they would do it on the left for free. I went ahead and did it. I can tell you, that treatment is not painless. I felt like a pin cushion. When I came out of the second treatment, the doctor moved my leg and asked if the hip hurt. I said yes. He said well, it couldn't be the joint because the nerves were burnt. He said he would set me up with a good PT near my home. He never did. I went to an orthopedic surgeon, he took an Xray and he said it's bone on bone, you need a hip replacement to get relief. I asked him about the nerves being burnt in that procedure and what the stem cell doctor said. He said sometimes they don't get all the nerves in that treatment. I went to 2 other orthopedic surgeons who also took Xrays and told me the same thing ..I needed a hip replacement. So in a few months, I'm going to go ahead with the hip replacement on that left hip. It's scary. But if I want to move, walk at least 2 miles, put on my socks and shoes, get in and out of my car, get up from a chair, and do exercises at my exercise class without pain, I've got to do it. My advice is that if its bone on bone, skip the stem cell expense.