Fat grafting after lumpectomy

amcarter

So I had a lumpectomy & SNB followed by radiation in 2012. No reconstruction at the time. However more than a baseball size area was excised so needless to say my right breast is smaller than the other side, has a good-sized indentation and is tilted differently. I do not want an implant, so I looked into fat grafting a few years ago. At than time the plastic surgeon at Duke thought I would be a good candidate despite the radiation, but my insurance (BCBS) denied it as "experimental". I couldn't pay for it at the time but I have finally decided to have something done whether insurance will pay for it or not.  Here are my questions:

Has anyone had fat grafting done after lumpectomy and been happy with the results?

There seem to be different techniques for the fat grafting. What is the most effective & reliable? Is the Brava necessary to be most effective? Is that only done in FL on the east coast? I live in NC. 

Has anyone had it done in NC? If so, where? Were you happy with the results? 

While I would prefer to stay in NC, I am willing to travel if necessary. I can't seem to find much information where people have had autologous fat grafting done after lumpectomy & rads.  I'm not sure why unless, like in my case, insurance refused to pay. Any information at all would be appreciated.

Moderators

HI amcarter,

We're sure others will be by shortly to weigh in with their thoughts and suggestions, but in the meantime, we thought maybe you'd be interested in checking out the main Breastcancer.org site's page on Reconstruction After Lumpectomy. There's also helpful information on the Paying for Reconstruction page and Finding a Qualified Plastic Surgeon page.

We hope this helps!

--The Mods