I posted these results under my review for Breast Reconstruction with Fat Transfer, but I wanted to post under liposuction since I found so few photos of lipo to back of thighs. Photos are 11 weeks post op. So many doctors say DO NOT lipo the Banana rolls (upper back of thigh roll) because it will cause the butt to drop or sag. But I had a very large fat roll there that I wanted removed. It showed through everything I wore, even jeans. I had lipo to front, inner, outer thighs plus banana rolls. LOVE the results. I never could have accomplished this through losing weight. Even at 25 pounds lighter I had the same bumps and lumps, they were just slightly smaller.
I am writing this to pay it forward through realself as other reviews have been invaluable to me in this process. Earlier this year I found out I had breast cancer through a mammogram. Then learned I’m BRCA 1. Thankfully God had been preparing my mind for this day. I have a long family history of breast cancer, and I was not shocked by the news. I have thought for years that someday I would have to say goodbye to my breasts. So after the news, I quickly decided on a nipple sparing double mastectomy. I only had about 2 weeks to research before my surgery at Rush in Chicago. Dr Claudia Perez (my oncologist who was also amazing) recommended me to Dr Shanaq to discuss reconstruction. So I started my research, all day, everyday. I was SHOCKED to find out that complete numbness is common after DMX. I was way more concerned about this than the actual loss of breast (which can be reconstructed). I also learned that when doctors refer to a reconstructed breast as “feeling natural” they mean TO SOMEONE ELSE OR THROUGH TOUCHING WITH YOUR HAND! Like what? If I read a breast will “feel” normal I would think that means—to me. Reversing the “numbness” of the Skin and nipple is referred to as restoring SENSATION. Immediately my research shifted to “how to restore sensation” to the skin and nipple. My goals became: 1. Get rid of the cancer 2. Restore as mush sensation as possible I read and read every study available on nerves, flap reconstruction, etc. One study even kept the nerve after the mastectomy, cleaned it and grafted it back to the nipple. I was a little unclear on options but had some ideas. Then I had my appointment with Dr Shanaq. I was mentally prepared to be shot down, told I was crazy, told that nerve grafting wouldn’t work. But Dr Shanaq was AMAZING!! She was open to all my ideas. She said “sure! I can take a nerve off the shelf and graft it to your nipple. No problem. I’m a microsurgeon!” I asked “by off the shelf, you mean cadaver?” Yes she did. I was thrilled! She said chances of it working were 50/50. But hey, thats better than zero! I also discussed the use of the external suction device developed by Dr Kouhri. She was open to it. (I am a firm believer in cupping and figured this was just a bigger version). So in the Spring of 2022 I went in for my surgery for double mastectomy and nerve grafting to the nipples. As I drove in I felt deep sadness for the loss of my breast that had served me so well. I nursed three children with an over abundance of milk and my breast had bounced back beautifully. I was a 34B and very happy with them. However, God had a different plan for my life and He gave me peace in my decision. The recovery went well overall. However, The first few days my right nipple went completely black. Yikes! I was scared I would lose it! I remembered seeing some episodes of Botched where they used a hyperbaric oxygen chamber and leaches to restore blood flow. I dove into research in the midst of my tears. It was a Saturday so not much was open. Thankfully I found an oxygen chamber open for Sunday morning! Amazing! I was praising God for giving me this path. My doctor ok’d it and I did 2 treatments over the weekend. Then I found a local hospital with a chamber. My doc wrote a prescription and my insurance paid for ten days of 2 hour sessions. Right After every session I could see more and more pink returning to the nipple. So so thankful for that! I also think this sped up and improved my overall healing. So now here I am. About 6 months has passed and I feel great. Everything healed well and I have about 50% sensation on the left side and 30% on the right side. I am still hopeful for more improvement as it can take up to a year+ for nerves to heal. Doc said to wait at least 6 months for nerve healing before any recon so now that phase begins!! I looked at all options of reconstruction: implants, flaps, fat. I know some women are fine staying flat which is amazing, but I am not one if them. IMPLANTS: I decided against implants first because I have an autoimmune issue and am afraid of BII. Also because I don’t want to have to worry about more surgeries to replace the implants ten years down the line. FLAPS: I also decided this was not for me primarily due to the massive scars it creates elsewhere on the body. I don’t need a tummy tuck and don’t really want to mess with that. Sooo FAT TRANSFER: this is for me. I had always wanted lipo on my thighs to smooth things out. If i Can then use the fat to build breasts it’s a win-win! I consulted with three surgeons who focus on reconstruction with FAT ONLY. They were all very impressive. But ultimately I wanted to stay local. I decided to go back to Dr Shanaq. She was again wonderful and agreed to do the first round fat transfer even though this is not her specialty. I know this will take 3 or more rounds of transfer to build the breasts. I also ordered the EVE (external vacuum expander) from Dr Kouri in Miami. I did not consider him for the procedure bc after reading reviews, I don’t think my personality would fit with his. I had planned to use EVE for 3 weeks prior to my surgery. But my date was moved two weeks earlier. So I figured I’ll try it for a week anyway. None of the docs I consulted said it’s required but I figured I’d give it a shot. So here I sit with huge suction cups in my very flat//concave breast. Fist surgery is next week! Updated on 5 Nov 2022: This photo shows my nipple starting at 4 days after mastectomy and ending after 12 hyperbaric oxygen chamber sessions. The healing happened right before my eyes. Every session it got more pink. Both nipples and skin are healthy now. Updated on 5 Nov 2022: Since I refuse to go about my day flat I am using PURLZ breast implant sizers all the time. I LOVE these things. They are meant for implant Sizing but I use them as breast replacements. They are soft bead filled bags with a small label of CC amount. I ordered 5 pair sizes 225-450. I wear them 24/7, even to work out. I throw them in the wash in a Lingerie bag and air dry. Updated on 13 Nov 2022: I had the first round if lipo And fat transfer to breasts. Fat was taken from my inner thighs and 110 cc’s put in each breast. I still have a ways to go but feeling pretty good with this round. I had expected for some of the Wrinkles to be a little smoother but at least they are no longer concave! Pain has not been bad at all. Stopped pain meds on day two. Updated on 23 Nov 2022: Inner thighs look good for 10 days PO. They are smooth but still a little swollen. Bruises are almost gone. The incisions are tiny and at top if thighs I always carried more weight in my right thigh which shows the most difference. I no longer have the bulge of fat on the thigh that started slightly above the knee. In this process the liposuction is just as important to me as the breast reconstruction. (Another reason I chose to do fat transfer) Updated on 23 Nov 2022: Bruises are almost gone. Ok am using arnica cream on the bruises and doing the chewable pellets when I can remember. Still some indents and a wrinkle or 2 but much more filled in than they were before. Praying I don’t lose too much. Next round is scheduled for February. Updated on 25 Feb 2023: Yesterday I had Round 2 done. Fat was taken from saddle bags and front of thighs. Doc said she got 230 cc’s in one breast and 210 in the other. Front of thighs definitely hurts today even with norco. But I’m able to walk around fine. Not sure how much fat I’ll retain but I’m shocked it almost looks like breasts at this point. Updated on 17 Mar 2023: It’s been three weeks since Round 2 fat transfer. I think I retained quite a bit so far. I’m hoping most of it will stay. The first week I did hyperbaric oxygen chamber almost everyday. I’ve also been using the EVE (formerly Brava) a couple hours a day ti promote blood flow. All the bruising is gone on my thighs I still have occasional dull pain there. Updated on 17 Mar 2023: Dr actually took a lot off the fronts of thighs which I’m happy about. She did mention that she did NOT take all the available fat on saddle bags in order to save it for future use. I still think I have quite a lot of fat left to use in the thighs. Updated on 6 Jun 2023: Dr Shanaq thought this time she would take fat from my stomach. It wasn’t enough so she also took a little from my hip bump, some outer thigh and above my knees. The lipo is looking AMAZING and has totally transformed my body! My hips, thighs, and stomach look great!! She was able to transfer 215 cc’s to each breast this round. I have wide shoulders and a broad chest so she is definitely building and layering a base. Not sure how it will look once swelling goes down but right now breasts are pretty hard and full. I am currently at the one week mark and I feel good. I am more sore from the lipo since she took from more areas. I have been walking 2-3 miles a day. I only took norco day 1 then went to just Tylenol. I’m still bruised but I’m sure that will fade. I did another package of 10 of the hyperbaric oxygen chamber sessions which I’m sure is contributing to my quick healing. I am not thrilled about wearing compression into the summer but not much I can do about that. Next surgery scheduled for Sept! So far I am very pleased and Dr Shanaq is doing such a great job with the lipo! Can’t thank her enough! Photos are from after mastectomy compared to now. Updated on 27 Jun 2023: So it’s been FOUR weeks since Round 3 fat transfer to breasts. I think I have retained a huge percentage of the fat this time. As several doctors had told me, it takes three rounds to look like breasts. I would agree that at this point it does look like I actually have breasts! I’ve attached a pic of now v. 5 days after the procedure. They do seem to have dropped a bit which is wonderful! Left breast is looking better than right. I hope next round we can get right side caught up. My emotions are still a bit up and down but overall I’m pretty happy. Updated on 9 Sep 2023: This week I had Round 4 of fat transfer. I am currently day 4 post op. Since I am BRCA 1, I also had my ovaries and tubes removed during the same surgery by a different doctor. Thankfully the doc was able to use existing scars from the last round of lipo and an incision in the belly button. This Round, fat was taken from Banana Rolls Love Handles Front and back of armpits. I also had some droopy skin excised from my right armpit. I did NOT use the BRAVA/EVE suction this time but I think this was a mistake. Doc got a lot less in this time with 150 put in right & 130 put in left. Definitely not what I was hoping for since the last two rounds were over 200 per breast. I do think the breast look decent and actually like breasts right now but I do still have A LOT of swelling. Overall I’m pleased with my body as I approach 50. Not sure of my next steps. I’m tired of wearing compression and dealing with scar minimization. It has been worth it so far. Just have to decide what’s next. I absolutely would chose fat over implants. For me it was the right choice. Updated on 24 Nov 2023: It’s been almost three months since Round 4 so results are basically permanent at this point. Doc said this round she was not able to harvest as much fat to put in ( not because there was not room in the breast). She also removed a weird chunk of skin from the right armpit which you can see in the picture. Overall I am happy with the breasts. They are soft with no lumps and I have a lot of sensation, even in the nipples. I am THRILLED with the liposuction as it improved my body in ways I never could have accomplished on my own. I was very worried about removing the banana rolls bc so many doctors say it will cause the butt to sag. However, I had a very large fat roll there that even showed in jeans that I really hated so I thought I would take a chance. Results are Perfect! Smooth with zero butt dropping. You can see the huge difference in the photo both to the front and back of my thighs. Dr. Shenaq has been truly amazing and exceeded all of my expectations.
