Can I Get Breast Augmentation With My Own Fat That I Can’t Get Rid Of?

Q: Dr. Eppley, I am 47yrs old and I have had four children and over the years I have tried to lose the belly fat and the fat in my thighs. Question can you use the belly fat to enlarge my breast and not saline or silicone implants. I am a 36B and would just like to stay that way just want them to look fuller and firm.

A: While the appeal of breast augmentation with fat is undeniable, it has significant limitations compared to the use of traditional saline or silicone implants. It is different in the following ways:

1) It will cost 2x to 3x more

2) It will only increase the size of the breasts a 1/2 cup in most cases

3) It requires an adequate amount of donor fat

4) How well the fat takes is unpredictable, 100% almost never occurs

5) It may require more than one fat grafting session/surgery

6) Breast lumps and irregularities may occur

7) If you need a breast lift also, this must be done first and wait three months before doing the fat grafting

8) It requires one month before and one month after surgery of using the Brava breast suction device 8 to 12 hours per day

In short, breast augmentation with your own fat is not a comparable operation to doing it with synthetic implants. As we know it today, it is more expensive, less effective and not as efficient. It is best done on patients that have the proper motivation, expectations and breast and body anatomy. This will likely change in the future but for now it is only a good option for a very select few breast augmentation patients.

Dr. Barry Eppley

Indianapolis, Indiana