Fat Transfer to BreastsNatural Breast Augmentation in Toronto

Fat Transfer to the Breasts

If you would like more breast volume and would rather use your own tissue, fat transfer to the breasts may be the operation to discuss with Dr. Power. It is also called natural breast augmentation, because it adds volume with fatty tissue taken from you. How much volume can be added depends on the donor fat available and on how much of the graft takes, which means the plan follows what your body can provide.

In appropriately selected patients, this approach can avoid a breast implant, which is one reason women ask about the operation. Fat transfer is not performed in the same procedure as a breast lift or as breast implants, and it may be performed later, as a secondary procedure, to mask implant visibility. Whether you are a candidate is decided at your examination, because the amount of fat that can be moved is individual.

"I think the best results are natural-looking. Refreshed and reflected by a patient’s self-confidence."

- DR. STEPHANIE POWER

Who Is a Candidate?

During your consultation, the amount of donor fat needed is difficult to quantify in general, which is why candidacy is assessed at the clinical examination, and very slim patients may not be candidates. Donor sites depend on where you have extra fatty tissue, and the most common sites are the abdomen, the flanks, and the anterior thigh.

Fat transfer to the breasts is offered for cosmetic enhancement only, in Dr. Power's private surgical facility, which means it is not offered for reconstruction. Fat grafting alone does not lift a breast that sits low on the chest, so if a lift is needed it is not added to this operation.

Some of the transferred fat may not survive, and a second session may be needed, which Dr. Power will talk through with you before you decide.

The Procedure

You have fat transfer under general anesthetic in an operating room, where fat is harvested from the donor site, prepared, and reinjected into the breast. The fat is harvested gently under low suction and prepared without a centrifuge, then injected in more than one plane so that more of the fat lies near blood vessels. The tumescent fluid used for harvest does not include local anesthetic during the collection of the fat.

The operation is not combined with a breast lift or with placement of breast implants, though a later fat transfer may be used to mask implant visibility. Surgery takes about 1.5 hours or longer, depending on the number of donor sites and the amount of fat harvested.

Recovery

In the weeks that follow, your activity limits follow the same timeline as breast lift with reduction, and the list below is there so you can see each step before you plan time away from work or the gym.

Discomfort is generally limited because the surgery involves soft tissue, though prescription pain medication may be needed for a few days, and avoiding strenuous activity for one month decreases bruising, swelling, and the risk of bleeding. The breasts may feel firm early on and generally soften as swelling resolves, which is part of early healing as the swelling settles.

Recovery Timeline

1. Within a weekYou may return to office work or school within a week, which is the first return to an ordinary daytime routine.
2. One monthLight gym exercises are appropriate after one month, so the return to the gym waits until that point.
3. 6 weeksFull activity as tolerated, including upper-body workouts, is appropriate at 6 weeks, by which time the surgical bra and the donor-area compression garment have been worn for 6 weeks.
4. ScreeningPlease continue routine mammogram screening after surgery, so this part of your usual health care stays on its regular schedule.

Risks

Before you decide, it helps to hear the limits of fat transfer in plain language, because an honest picture of healing is part of choosing this operation.

1. Some of the transferred fat may not survive, and that partial resorption is why a second session may be needed.
2. Other risks include firm lumps or oil cysts, fat necrosis, bleeding and hematoma, infection, asymmetry, and scarring, all of which Dr. Power reviews with you during your consultation.

Cost in Toronto

Fat transfer to the breasts

$12,480 + HST

This is the starting fee, and it varies with the volume transferred and the number of donor sites.

The starting fee is $12,480 + HST, and the fee may vary with the volume transferred and the number of donor sites. After your consultation, Dr. Power provides a personalized quote, and starting fees on our pricing page are the basis for an exact, all-inclusive quote, valid for six months, with financing available.

The quote includes the surgeon fee, anesthesia fee, operating room and nursing fees, compression garments and surgical supplies as applicable, an overnight stay if applicable, and HST. A non-refundable 25% deposit secures the surgery date, and the balance is due 3 weeks before surgery, while monthly payment plans are available through Beautifi.

Fat transfer to the breasts is not listed among the procedure choices on the consultation form, so please name fat transfer to the breasts in your message, which lets us prepare for the procedure you have in mind.

Related Procedures

Breast augmentation with implants, breast lift, and breast implant revision are separate operations, and a later fat transfer may be used to mask implant visibility, while liposuction describes fat removal on its own. If you would like to read more first, start with fat grafting for breast augmentation and whether you are a candidate.

About Your Surgeon

Dr. Stephanie Power, MD, MSc, FRCSC

Plastic surgeon certified by the Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Canada

Your fat transfer consultation at Power Plastic Surgery is with Dr. Power, who will examine you, see where donor fat is available, and talk through whether this operation fits your goals. She earned her MD and completed her plastic surgery residency at the University of Western Ontario, where she also completed an MSc in Medical Biophysics, and she received her Royal College certification in Plastic Surgery (FRCSC) in 2013. She then completed fellowships in Aesthetic Surgery and in Trauma and Reconstructive Surgery at the University of Toronto, having graduated with honours from Princeton University before medicine. Her Toronto practice has an all-female team, so the people who care for you from consultation through surgery are women.

Meet Dr. PowerRequest a consultation