Fat Grafting Breasts

Q: I recently came across a website where breast augmentation was being done using fat injections rather than implants. Is this safe?

A: Structural fat grafting has become an extremely versatile technique used by many plastic surgeons. Popularized by Sydney Coleman MD, a New York plastic surgeon, this technique involves the harvesting of a patient’s own fat through gentle, traumatic aspiration methods. The fat is then centrifuged, purified and loaded into small syringes used for injection. The basic theory centers around the fact that fat is living tissue and if handled carefully and injected correctly, it will re-establish new blood supply and become a permanent filler. Some fat, however, may not survive the grafting procedure and can form micro-calcifications as it dies and is resorbed by the body. These micro-calcifications are the problem when dealing with the breasts. Clearly, fat grafting would work to enlarge a patient’s breasts. However, if micro-calcifications were to develop, it would make the detection of breast cancer impossible because one common mammographic finding in breast cancer are micro-calcifications. It is for this reason that fat grafting should never be performed for breast augmentation.
Otherwise, fat grafting has many uses as permanent filler. It can be used in the face, cheeks, and lips and for plumping-up deep folds. It is useful for acne scars and depressions. It can even be used to enlarge the buttocks. Despite its endless potential applications, fat grafting should never be used to augment the breasts because of its high risk in preventing the detection of breast cancer. For more information about structural fat grafting log onto my website at www.drhainer.com or schedule a complimentary consultation.