Stephen R. Sullivan, MD, MPH

I'm presently 2 days post-op for what I'm calling Facial Masculinization Surgery. In my case, lipo to the neck and implants in the chin and mandible jaw. While I'm still quite swollen I already feel very satisfied with the quality of care I've received and I have a lot of confidence that however my face settles, I'll be happier with it. There's not a lot of info out there for transgender men who are considering facial surgery, but Dr. Sullivan came highly recommended by a number of trans women friends and right away he had great suggestions for "going the other direction."
He does have a dry sense of humor and I can see from some other reviews that it's not to everyone's taste. I happen to appreciate it: he's warm but with good professional boundaries and very attentive. I personally think the dry quips of his keep the mood light when personal appearance can be such an emotional thing. He let me know very respectfully that changing your face can result in a lot of complex emotions and he made sure I had good social or therapeutic support.
The staff in general at Mount Auburn Hospital where he works out of are also stellar. I had a great nurse and anesthesiologist as well.
Will update with more photos once the swelling goes down.
There's no option for "FTM Facial Masculinization Surgery" in the treatment dropdown, unfortunately, but there should be!

Updated on 7 Jul 2020:
Still a ton of swelling but I'm out of the woods in terms of the worst of it (days 2-5 were very painful, as was expected). It's always hard not to try and play detective and figure out what's a temporary change versus what my results will eventually look like, but I do see that jawline "ledge" I wanted starting to appear.

As you can see, still puffy and bruised for the most part.

I met with Dr. Stephen R.Sullivan in February 2019 for FFS and I had my procedure done on 7/18/19 let me start by saying he is an amazing plastic surgeon, very compassionate and caring of his patients and he's always available if questions arise which with me was all the time, also Dr. Sullivan's office staff was also very professional and helpful to me every time I called them with questions or concerns. I can never Thank Doctors Sullivan & Taylor for my procedure of my Facial feminization even though its been just 2 weeks since my surgery I am seeing the amazing results that was done on my face. So IMO anybody out there in need of FFS or any other plastic surgery procedure I would highly recommend Taylor & Sullivan Plastic Surgery in Cambridge, MA. they are true professionals in their field. Thank You Soooo Much :)) Staci

Excited to finally get a breast lift! Surgery is scheduled for 4/10/2019 with Dr Stephen Sullivan at Mount Auburn hospital. I’m nervous, but mostly excited - I know this is long overdue and needed for my confidence. I’m 25! I want my breasts to look as such. Tomorrow I’ll prep everything for the first few days after surgery - meals, laundry etc. Two more sleeps!

Updated on 10 Apr 2019:
I did it!! Arrived at the hospital at 6am, surgery at about 8am. Dr Sullivan and the team had me feeling comfortable, informed and excited - truly a great group. Oddly, I cried when I woke up from anesthesia - apparently that happens, especially with younger people? Anyways currently wearing my comfortable post surgery bra. Maintaining light movement/walking. No pain (only thing that hurts is my throat where the feeding tube was). I’m swollen on the sides of my chest, but right now it mostly feels numb.
Feeling sleepy and will go for another nap soon.

Updated on 16 Apr 2019:
Surgery went well! We initially thought I’d need an anchor lift but when they were operating they aligned that a lollipop incision would suffice! I am so happy about that. Less scars? Woot woot. Again, can’t say enough good things about Dr Sullivan. Truly a skilled surgeon with a patient and thoughtful bedside manner. I would highly recommend I’m if you’re in the New England area - your breasts will be in good hands.

Recovery is going well! Barely needed pain meds, stopped them completely 2 days ago. Didn’t use the oxy at all. I’m oddly supper comfortable sleeping on my back, lol.

The girls are coming along nicely! Sometimes they’re itchy, and sometimes there’s a bit of shooting pain (like once or twice a day); nothing unmanageable. I am so excited to see how these cuties look when I’m fully recovered. So far, I’m in love!

Updated on 27 May 2019:
Utterly obsessed with my breasts. They’re gorgeous, perky, and they feel phenomenal. The scars are light and flat. I wear silicon strips on them. I had wound separation at the base of the lollipop from week 2 to week 6. Key thing for having the wounds heal quickly is GAUZE. The bandaids slowed things down. Overall, I am thoroughly and wholeheartedly happy with my gorgeous breasts and feel they suit my curvy frame very well - they aren’t too big and aren’t small either. My confidence is through the roof and I can’t believe this is my life now! Clothes look so much better and I am WORLDS more confident in my romantic life. Can’t thank Dr Sullivan enough for the life changing surgery. He is a PHENOMENAL, personable, thoughtful, kind doctor and an enormously talented surgeon. His staff is incredible as well!

Amazing bedside manner. Dr Sullivan fixed my broken nose and took lots of time explaining and answering my questions. He did a perfect job and also managed to ensure I did not vomit after waking up from general anesthesia! I was completely comfortable from beginning to the end of the process. Thank you Dr, Sullivan!!!

Doctors Sullivan & Taylor are the best. I thank them for all that they and their staff as well as the staff at Mt. Auburn Hospital have done for me. With my age and medical history, I was very worried about the procedure. I was having it done for medical reasons and they made me feel very comfortable. Both Dr. Sullivan & Dr. Taylor went above and beyond to make my procedure a success. Thank you!

I am a 40 year old mother of 4. After years of breastfeeding the girls need a lift. I've been pouring over reviews on real self. It seems a lift alone is less common than a lift with implants. I am not seeking any augmentation. Approximate 34D. I would love to hear from others in Boston who have loved their surgeon or not loved! Thanks is advance. This site is so helpful.

Updated on 20 Apr 2017:
I had my lift today with Dr. Sullivan. Also some under arm lipo. I couldn't be more pleased with the experience. I'm quite bruised that will take sometime. Utiliing the pain meds! My throat is super dry. Dr. Sullivan amazing. He listened to all of my concerns pre-op and answered my numerous questions.
Updated on 21 Apr 2017:
After breastfeeding multiple children my breasts needs some fixing.

I had a breastlift with underarm lipo this am. Pain so far has been manageable. A little nausea despite the scopolamine Patch. Dr Sullivan and day surgery team were amazinkg. Thinks went so smoothly! Im quite bruised. I have been sleeping most of the day. Hoping to shower tomorrow.



Updated on 22 Apr 2017:
Very swollen and bruised. Some drainage from both breasts.
Walked the dog today and went to the park with my youngest. Think I may have overdone it. I got a little light headed towards the end.

Updated on 22 Apr 2017:
My surgery went amazingly well. I was the first case of the day. There were no surprises. Dr. Sullivan was incredibly attentive. I received a call from him yesterday and he responded to a call on Saturday. I couldn't ask for more!

Updated on 23 Apr 2017:
Still quite swollen. Moving around quite well. No longer using narcotics during the day. I have crepitus on my right side and collar bone which feels quite odd. I've read this is normal. Loving the results so far.

Updated on 27 Apr 2017:
One week post op today. LOVING my results. Saw the lovely Dr Sullivan today. He is pleased with the healing so far. The right side is still more bruised and swollen but it is getting better every day. He cleared me to increase my activity as tolerated but no lifting heaving things, push-ups or high impact activity. I'm just so pleased to not to have saggy breasts anymore. I think I will be a bit sad as they soften and fall into place. Loving that upper pole fullness right now!

Updated on 4 May 2017:
Two weeks post op today. The glue is slowly coming off. Feeling pretty well. Sounds crazy but getting a little frustrated with kind of taking it easy. Big Anniversary weekend coming up!

Updated on 12 May 2017:
3 weeks post op. I couldn't be happier. In addition to perky breasts my shoulders no longer ache now that my breast are in their proper position. My incisions are mostly like a pencil line. I have one small area underneath the left breast that is slowly healing. I have been giving medihoney a try there. 12 hours on. 12 off. I may try silicone strips. I've resumed all exercise except high impact. Truley, this has been the best decision.

Updated on 21 May 2017:
Loving my lift. I'm surprised I didn't lose any density through out this process. I prepped myself for being smaller post op. That said, I think my size suits the rest of me just fine. Interestingly, I am topping the scales right now at 148 pound and 5'4". This is the heaviest I've been in years! Hoping to shed a few but a little nervous as in the past I always lose breast tissue first. So unfair!

Updated on 29 May 2017:
Finally went to VS today and measured a 34D. So I definitely have not lost any breast tissue. Fun to try some "push up style" bras. I don't think I need to drop 50$ on one of their bras though. The cheapy ones at TJ max do the same thing! Things are healing quite nicely. The small open are is now closed. I'm inconsistent with the silicone strips for the scars. Hoping they don't drop anymore! The right side is perfect. The left has the tiniest bit of extra tissue beneath the inframamary fold which somewhat disappoints me. Overall I'm still incredibly satisfied though. It is amazing to no longer struggle with supportive bathing suit tops!

Updated on 19 Jun 2017:
The girls are settling in nicely. Summer tanks and swim suits are a breeze. Scars are coming along ok.

There are no words to describe what an awesome surgeon Dr. Sullivan is. He is patient, well spoken, extremely informative with explaining the procedure. He takes time to answer every question or concern. Dr. Sullivan does not make you feel rushed. I have never liked my breasts, even as a young teen. I developed very fast and with that came sagging. Also, Pregnancy and nursing several children contributed to this. I am beyond happy with the results. My breasts have not looked this good in my entire life. I did not get implants and love the natural look. I have looked at a lot of pics on the internet while contemplating having the procedure. The results Dr. Sullivan produced with me are incredible! I would highly recommend him!

My motivation to see Dr. Sullivan was simply that I had some cysts in my scalp that needed to removed. As this is a hereditary and reoccurring unfortunate of circumstances I have it taken care every couple of years. In my experiences with him and his work I would consider it close to flawless. Flawless would be not having to go at all.

The procedure was thoughtful, timely, and overall painless. The staff and attending nurses are always professional and go above and beyond.

My family has been in the medical field for generations. So having seen my fair share of physicians, hospital environments, staff, procedures, ect. This man and the hospital culture is standing quite alone in the magnitude of their performance. Truly most excellent.

Where to start. I went to see Dr. Sullivan on August 2 2019. When I first made my appt I was told they took my insurance and no problem. I had my doctors fax over the referral needed which by the way this is for FFS SURGERY as I am a trans woman. I spend $300 round trip in Uber fares to get to this doctor because I had all my faith in him. So I get to the office I checked in and waiting time was about 30 mins. I finally got called in and the nurse walked me to the consult room. Doctor walked in and we started talking about what were my goals. I showed him a pic of me when I was about 20 lbs thinner and all dolled up and I told him I was just trying to look like a better version of me. Dr asked if I had any future surgery plans and I said yes, I Have gained 30lbs to get a bbl which is necessary for most trans women to feminize our bodies. He asked who was doing the work and I said dr Carlos Ramos in Colombia and he said OH DR RAMOS so I asked if he knew him and he just laughed about it and said NO, his laugh came from a place of “YIKES YOU ARE GOING TO LATIN AMERICA TO GET WORKED DONE”, I explained to him DR. Ramos is one of Latin America most sought out doctors with a 5 month waitlist list and people traveling from all over the world to see him specially people from Europe. You don’t need to be a Harvard graduate or practice in the USA to be a great doctor. I felt he should of kept his sarcastic comment to himself specially standing in front of a patient and a Hispanic Patient for that matter. He went on to explain the surgeries and he was good with that part but always with sarcasm and when I asked a question he smirked and giggled as if I was to know the answer. When I told him about the insurance claim he said I had to do my own claim as he doesn’t do it with my specific insurance as he don’t want to put his staff thru that. All the time I spoke to his office manager over the phone they assured me they took insurance and they handle that part. I kept bringing up to him that patients are not responsible to do an insurance claim and insurance wouldn’t take it from a patient and all he said was he would send me the codes and notes so I can do my own claim. I asked if he could take the pictures they normally take because insurance requires pictures and he said HE WASN’T A PHOTOGRAPHER which had me completely shook as most surgeons take pics of Their patients on consult or have someone else in the office take it for him. I’ve taken a few other trans women for their FFS and I have never seen a doctor so rude to them. I felt disrespected as a patient. I felt like he was just rushing me out of his office because he just didn’t want to do another insurance claim. Whenever I asked questions they were just nothing to him besides getting a good laugh right in front of my face. If he didn’t feel I was a good candidate or simply didn’t want to do my work I think they were better ways things could be handle. I was under no way shape or form rude or disrespectful. The way I see it’s like this. If he’s that rude to you to your face I can’t imagine how he will handle you when he puts you to sleep. I came home crying out of anger , I couldn’t believe someone could treat their patient so badly. This has been my experience. I’ve take countless people to get plastic surgery even with insurance and the doctors and Staff have been the most helpful and kind. I wouldn’t recommend him to anyone. No one deserves this level of disrespect . NO ONE.

I had a breast lift a. 4 weeks ago. I am so happy with my results. Dr. Stephen R Sullivan from Mount Auburn Hospital in Cambridge, Ma performed the procedure. He was wonderful. The pain was minimal, the stitches were all inside and dissolved. The staff and post op nurses were great! I have a full review on Dr. Sullivan's link. Never been happier with my results! I can't believe they are the same breasts!

Updated on 8 Feb 2017:
Before my lift I literally fell into my bra.
No fullness or cleavage. I am so happy with my new appearance.

Updated on 11 Nov 2018:
I had a Breast augmentation with 250cc breast implants .
I was thrillled with the results of my breast lift last year. But I started lifting weights 6-7 days a week and I lost all the volume I had. I also had a reverse tummy tuck at the same time .
I am 3 days post surgery and I am very uncomfortable with the amount of swelling. I was reassured it was normal.
My implants are high right
Now but will settle into where they are suppose to be in a few weeks.