The Plain Truth's: Your Health Today ONLINE: 'Natural' breast enlargement using stem cells from spare fat to be made available in Britain

'Natural' breast enlargement through stem cell therapy is said to be an improvement on implants

A stem cell technique that can enlarge breasts while reducing the waistline is to be made available to British women.

The treatment involves taking stem cells from excess fat on the stomach or thigh, and then 'growing' them in the breasts.

Surgeons say the result gives a more natural look than many synthetic implants.

The process can only make breasts one cup size larger at this time, but it is expected bigger
augmentations will be possible as the technique develops.

Around a dozen Britons have had breasts repaired with stem cells after cancerous cells were removed, but this is the first time the treatment will be carried out on healthy women.

The stem cell technique would produce more natural-looking breasts than silicone implants.

'This is a very exciting advance in breast surgery,' he said. 'Breasts treated with stem cells feel more natural because this tissue has the same softness as the rest of the breast.

'Implants are a foreign body. They are associated with long-term complications and require replacement. They can also leak and cause scarring.'

Stem cells are early-stage cells which can grow into any tissue of the body - organs, skin or blood.

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Actress and breast cancer survivor Suzanne Somers recently made headlines when she opted to have her breast reconstruction done using this fairly new method. After undergoing a lumpectomy and reportedly waking up with ‘half her breast gone,’ Somers had her breast restored to its original size using fat and stem cells harvested from her abdomen.

While noting that this method has only been around for about two years and isn’t yet widely used among plastic and reconstructive surgeons, Dr. Shahram Salemy, MD, FACS, and RealSelf.com Medical Expert, says with advances being made, “we’re now seeing outstanding, lasting results from this approach.” The doctor first performs liposuction to remove some fat from areas like the hips or the abdomen, filters and concentrates it, and then injects it into the breasts.

“This is a good option for women who are not interested in having implants, have some excess fat in other areas of their body, and want a fuller look to their breasts,” Dr. Salemy says. It can also be used to correct size discrepancies between the two breasts.