I want fat transfer to my breast, is it cheaper than implants?

Dear Patient: Great Question!  Unfortunately, the procedure of Fat Transfer to the Breast ends up being more costly than a straight Breast Augmentation with Silicone Gel or Saline Implants.  The reason why is this:  In a Fat Transfer to the Breast, the Board Certified Plastic Surgeon first has to perform Liposuction to graft the desired fat, and usually if you tend to be on the skinnier side, he would need to graft fat from more than one area.  This adds up to the length of time you'll be under general anesthesia, thus becoming a more expensive procedure.  If you need to have at least 200grams of Fat or more to achieve the desired look in your breasts, and you don't have enough fat in your abdomen, the Board Certified Plastic Surgeon might need to perform Liposuction in your Flank area or any other area he deems appropriate.  He then needs to process the Fat and then finally re-inject the fat in your breast area.
Usually this would take anywhere around two hours or more in the OR.  A straight Breast Augmentation, through the nipple, sub-muscular, with Cohesive Silicone Gel Implants will take anywhere from 45minutes to an hour and fifteen minutes at most for a skilled Board Certified Plastic Surgeon.  That's why Fat Transfer to the Breasts ends up being more costly than a Breast Aug with Implants.  Usually the costs would vary per state, but if you're having the procedure done with a Board Certified Plastic Surgeon, the average cost for a Breast Aug with Silicon Gels would be anywhere upwards of $6,600 and a Fat Transfer to the Breasts anywhere upwards of $7,000.  Hope this helps!

 Fat grafting to the breast is the nice method of achieving a natural Volume enlargement of the breasts. However, it is a lengthier procedure then using breast implants, and therefore usually costs significantly more. Depending on the amount of volume placed and time in surgery, the operating costs will go up.  You will also not get as much volume enlargement as you would with an implant. There are certain advantages to fat grafting, the main ones being no permanent implant in your body and the secondary improvement in the body contour from the liposuction necessary to obtain the fat. There are also disadvantages including the longevity of the grafts, percent survivability of the fat, and possibility of fat cysts and nodules. Overall, the results are very good when done properly and precisely by a board certified plastic surgeon with experience in fat transfer. 

With fat transfer you won't get as much augmentation as you would with an implant.  This technique is very surgeon dependent so make sure you go to a respected Board Certified Plastic Surgeon with lots of experience in fat grafting.  The key to the procedure, in addition to achieving a beautiful result, is survival of the fat graft.  To this end, I use a specialized fat grafting system in my OR to ensure maximum graft viability.