Fat transfer to breast procedure - or lipofilling - essentially uses a type of low suction, gentle liposuction to take fat from unwanted areas, washed, filtered and prepared for injection into the tissues beneath the breast envelope and over the breast fascia. Fat is great for offering a small 1 to 1.5 cup size enhancement, for retaining soft, mobile, natural feeling and looking breasts and for correcting breast asymmetries

Fat transfer also known as fat grafting, autologous fat transfer, lipo filling or lipo-injection—is the ultimate in breast augmentation. Rozina has long vowed that “Fat is the future and soon all breasts will be enhanced this way!” Fat transfer is the ultimate in upcycling, transferring individual cells (adipocytes and stem cells) to enhance your own tissues. Fat is very conveniently removed from areas of unwanted or excess body fat. (abdomen, flanks, thighs, knees etc) and transplanted to areas that would benefit from rejuvenation, regeneration or volume enhancemen tsuch as breasts, face, scars. Fat transfer alone can only increase breast volume by 1-2cup sizes or restore volume deficit after breast conserving surgery such as a lumpectomy. Fat transfer is pre-eminent in cases of breast asymmetry, permitting the future selection of same sized implants; or if specific areas require enhancement rather than the whole breast eg. upper pole deflation following weight loss, ageing or breastfeeding.

Fat transfer is a multi-stepped process: Firstly, fat needs to be carefully harvested in a process that is superficially similar to liposuction but designed to ensure that the fat cells harvested are alive, unbroken and linked to the rich supply of stem cells found near the subcutaneous blood vessels. A tumescent or wet technique and mechanical or power assisted (vibrating) liposuction device is used to dislodge the fat and float out intact living fat cells using relatively low suction pressures. In this way the fat cells and stem cells are harvested healthy, intact and viable. Secondly the harvested fat is washed, filtered and purified and prepared in small aliquots (10-20mls) for careful re-injection into the body. Fat cells are initially dependent on oxygen diffusion for survival and later to picking up a new blood supply, so fat injection isperformed using a, multiplanar technique, laying down lots of thin layers of fat close to skin or muscle. Traditionally 50-70%of fat cells are thought to survive the transfer processand ‘take’ as a living graft. Expertise, experience and techniques make a significant difference to this and Rozina is enjoying some very note worthy results which are also forming part of an international PhD study that Rozina is leading. The number and quality of viable fat cells at the time of transfer is essential to long term graft volume, thus harvesting technique and purification process are important to a successful outcome.

Thick, pure fat aliquots for facial transfer may be prepared by centrifugation (spun to separate components) but larger more liquid fat volumes required for breast transfer are best washed and filtered in sterile closed filtration system. Surgical expertise and experience are key factors in the success of any fat transfer procedure. The key remaining determinant is the recipient site (healthy tissue, good blood supply) thus efforts to optimizing this aspect of the process using continuous wave radiofrequency are on going. To further enhance the fat transfer process for Rozina’s reconstruction and aesthetics clients, she has partnered with The Regenerative clinic and “Tissue and Cell Technologies” in order to provide state of the art storage of any excess harvested fat, which can restored for several years and then thawed in any size aliquots for out-patient injection of fat. This offers an invaluable service for serial enhancement of volume for patients undergoing post partial or full mastectomy breast reconstruction, other types of reconstructive surgery and individuals under going facial aesthetic regeneration. Reconstructive and cosmetic procedures using adipose tissue (fat) are established techniques in use around the world. Conventionally, the fat is harvested at the same time that it is used in thereconstructive or cosmetic procedure. However, if the volume of fat needed is large, then multiple filling procedures will be required and usually this means repeated harvesting of fat, each occurring immediately prior to the filling procedure. While the filling process can be undertaken under local anesthetic, harvesting normally requires a general anesthetic and this carries the increased risk plus the post procedure discomfort associated with the harvesting process. Fat storage in this way allows forall the fat needed to be harvested under a single general anesthetic during the first operation. This fat is frozen directly in via the operating room and stored in a licensed Human Tissue Bank until the patient or the plastic surgeon decide it is the right time to thaw some or all of the fat for reconstructive or aesthetic use