Fat Grafting after Breast Reconstruction
After a mastectomy, lumpectomy, or radiation therapy, a woman’s breasts will often have asymmetry, contour irregularities, and scarring. Fat grafting is a procedure that can correct these cosmetic issues by injecting your body’s own fat tissue into the affected areas. This minimally-invasive procedure is a natural enhancement to a flap or implant breast reconstruction and allows for flexibility in molding the breast into a more attractive shape. As a board certified reconstructive and plastic surgeon, Dr. Oren Lerman in Manhattan, NY, can provide fat grafting after breast reconstruction that refines the appearance of your breasts and boosts your self-confidence.
The Fat Grafting Procedure
A fat transfer is a low-risk, minimally-invasive procedure that is usually performed on an outpatient basis. Fat is first harvested from a part of your body with sufficient fatty tissue, such as the abdomen, buttocks, or thighs. After the fat is removed from the donor site, it is purified in a centrifuge in our office to prepare it for immediate injection.
The purified fat is then injected into the areas of the breasts requiring volume restoration. In the months following the fat transfer, some fat will be absorbed by the body, reducing the amount retained at the treatment site. The fat that remains at the site after the initial healing period should represent permanently grafted tissue.
How Fat Transfer Can Improve Breast Appearance
Using a woman’s own fat allows for a great deal of flexibility in correcting aesthetic irregularities and sculpting the breast into a more appealing profile. Fat grafting can be especially useful after breast reconstruction with implants, but there are numerous benefits of fat transfer after breast reconstruction, including:
- Smoothing out dents following a lumpectomy
- Filling in areas of concavity on the upper or inner area of the breasts
- Hiding the edges of an implant
- Augmenting the size of reconstructed breasts
- Creating gradual contour from the chest wall to the breast mound
- Improving the appearance of scarring
- Facilitating the healing of skin damaged by radiation
Advantages of fat grafting include correcting virtually any cosmetic imperfection, creating a natural look, and eliminating the possibility of tissue rejection.
Other Fat Transfer Benefits
In addition to improving breast appearance, fat transfer offers other advantages that make it a good option for breast reconstruction refinement, such as:
- The fat cannot be rejected as foreign body since it is your own tissue
- The injected fat will feel remarkably similar to breast tissue
- The procedure typically takes less than one hour to perform
- Recovery is straightforward, minimally uncomfortable, and brief
- There is little risk associated with a fat transfer
Book a Consultation
During a thorough consultation involving a review of your health history, goals, and other factors, Dr. Lerman can help you decide if a fat transfer is the best way to achieve the results you desire. Call us today at (212) 434-6980, or reach out using our online form to book an appointment.
