How many grams do I need to be removed to be a B cup?

Hi Rose! No surgeon can answer this question without knowing what your 32DD or 32DDD bras look like, how your breasts "fit" in that particular manufacturer's brassieres, and what the planned B cup bra will look like with your reduced breasts in them. However, I CAN tell you how much tissue needs to be removed in order for insurance to cover your surgery-- the formula is based on height and weight, which you so kindly provided!At 5' 3" and 114 lbs., your chosen surgeon will need to remove 267 grams per breast, as determined by the Schnur formula that virtually all insurance providers utilize. However, they also require "minimums" of 400 grams per breast to be removed. Since there are 454 g per pound, you will need to have nearly a pound removed per breast. One gram less than 400g and insurance will deny your claim and you get the entire hospital or surgicenter bill. Call and ask a couple what their "typical" charge is for outpatient breast reduction surgery taking 3 hours, including professional fees (surgeon, anesthesia), operating room, and supplies/medications/IV fluids etc. You may get a shock!Depending on your anatomy, removal of at least 400 g per breast may nearly mastectomize you, or it may leave you with tiny breasts disproportionate to the rest of your body (at least a body that has been large-chested since puberty), or you might be just right.It might help you to understand that virtually every woman with large uncomfortable (physically and emotionally) breasts THINKS she will be OK with small breasts. I absolutely understand that and have heard it many times over the 27 years in private practice I have been doing breast reductions from small to massive. What many (not all) don't realize is that being "too small" is just as much of a curse as being too large, and then they bitterly regret going too small just to satisfy an insurance "requirement." I've done far too many breast augmentations after "too much" breast reduction. That is truly a shame when the woman had "enough" breast tissue to be any size she wanted, if only she had undergone the breast lift or "cosmetic" reduction (smaller amount than required by insurance "minimums") by self-paying.Insurance may "cover" a too-small breast reduction, but then you have to pay for the elective surgery to return to the "ideal" size you COULD have had.Please Google the Schnur formula (based on BMI) and check your insurance company's "minimum" tissue removal requirements and you will see that you must have 400g removed for "coverage." Whether or not that translates to a B cup is dependent on lots of other variables and cannot be (truthfully) answered. Best wishes! Dr. Tholen

Breast Reduction is a complicated procedure that is best done by those with the most training and experience. It is very difficult to determine the resultant cup size and shape based solely on the number of grams that are removed from your breast to best match your ideal breast image without an examination by a board certified plastic surgeon. Not just any board certified plastic surgeon, but one with many years of frequently performing breast reduction and lift surgeries, including different approaches, techniques and even fat transfer and implant choices if you are lacking superior breast fullness.This is because several measurements—not to mention breast characteristics such as density—are needed to determine how much and where to remove breast tissue to meet your goals. Without knowing your existing breast shape, dimensions, and the density of your breast tissue, it would be difficult to make this determination. For example, the same volume of breast tissue will weigh different amounts (measured in ounces or grams) in different people depending on its density. The existing base width of your breast and what you will ultimately want to look like will determine, in many cases, the maximal volume and weight that will need to be removed for the best result.Please click on the link below for more information!

In my opinion, there is no method to calculate how much weight should be removed to produce a certain cup size.   The insurance company will calculate the minimal amount of weight that needs to be removed.  Typically, I remove a significant amount more tissue to achieve best shape and size for my patients.  This is base on how the breast look and "fit" my patient's frame and NOT a cup size.

There are several different reasons why it can be very difficult to predict how many grams should be removed from any breast to achieve any cup size. First of all there are no absolute standards for what cup sizes should be and every manufacturer has a lot of leeway in assigning cup sizes to their different bras. Secondly, different women wear their bras differently and will choose different cup sizes for the same sized breast depending on what their personal preferences are. Also, different breasts have different densities so the same volume can have different weights for different individuals. Finally, we have no idea what size your breasts are to begin with so we cannot begin to guess how much weight might possibly be removed. The bottom line is that I would encourage you to have thorough consultation with a board certified plastic surgeon who can examine you and help you answer some of these questions. Good luck!

Congratulations on your decision to proceed with breast reduction surgery. It is one of the most patient pleasing operations we perform. 
Unfortunately, there is no direct correlation between the amount of tissue removed and the ultimate cup size that a patient will wear after breast reduction surgery.
Before undergoing the breast reduction procedure it is very important to communicate your size goals with your surgeon. In my practice, the use of photographs of “goal” pictures (and breasts that are too big or too small) is very helpful. I have found that the use of words such as “natural” or “C cup” means different things to different people and therefore prove unhelpful.Also, as you know, cup size varies depending on who makes the bra; therefore, discussing desired cup size may also be inaccurate.
Best wishes.

Cup sizes are relative sizes to the chest diameter, and there is no way to give a guess as to what must be removed to get you to a B. The tissue weight will also depend on the breast tissue density. We like to discuss breast reduction in the same way we might approach an augmentation. Show your surgeon what you wish to look like, and if the result is ralistic for you.