First and foremost, I wasn't sure where to post this as there isn't a sub-forum surrounding this type of procedure. Mods feel free to move this topic if this isn't the right place to post this!
So BA is the next upcoming surgery for me. I am dumbfounded with the seemingly lack of resources and information of the procedure on these forums. There seems to be an abundance of information on FFS, voice surgery, and SRS, however.
Currently I am not even an A cup and I have been on hormones for almost two years. I want my breasts to look good but at the same time worry about proportions, etc.
1. Would I want to go to a BA surgeon who specialized or is accustomed to dealing with trans patients? If so, who are the recommended BA doctors for trans women?
2. If any BA surgeon is fine, who are the ones I should look at in California? I live in Cali and as much as possible would want to save on flight tickets. Any recommendations out of state is fine also.
3. I've seen BA cost as low as $2900 in California to $6000 in other places. I know higher prices probably = quality, but how are some surgeons charging that much cheaper? Do I typically want to stay away from them? As much as possible I would rather not spend a ton of money on this surgery.
4. Opinions on average cup size for an Asian woman? Do I want to go B cup and blend in with the rest of Asian girls, or go for a C cup since I am paying for this procedure anyway and should go for the goods? The general consensus is that A/B cup is average for Asians, while a C would put you at gifted.
5. Anything else you think I should know that could help me is appreciated!
Thank you so much ladies! <3
While I was never interested in BA, when we transitioned we used plastic surgeons. Had I wanted to do it, I would have used a reconstructive plastic surgeon. On the other side, you might still have some growing to do if you have only been on HRT for two years. At two years I was less than a AA size cup and without BA I am between a AA and a B cup. We were well aware of the post surgical issues with BA I didn't want to spend the rest of my life taking care of them.
Roni, I'm sorry I'm not up to speed with your progress, so I'll assume nothing and just share my personal experience.
I did mine in the LA area 30 years ago. I went through the phone book and found a "plastic surgeon" close to me and called the office. I explained my situation and asked if the surgeon would work with me. They had no issues whatsoever.
The doctor was Italian. I only mention this because he said something like, "I'm Italian and I know breasts." So, he brought it up as a means to set me at ease. He wanted to give me large implants. I wanted small. I won that argument. I didn't want any larger than a B cup when all was said and done. I was wearing a 36 B bra at the time with silicon medical inserts. I hadn't been on hormones very long either, perhaps 4 or 5 months. Medical care was practically non existent for us "->-bleeped-<-s" back then.
I got my GRS a year and 2 months later and my breasts had not developed any more with the hormonal treatment that I received. The doctor I was seeing had me on a regimen of DES. Yeah, that was MY HRT. After surgery, my breasts did grow with the lack of testosterone and proper hormones. Half of me is real, half is not. This is why I advise people to wait until after GRS for a year or two to see what develops. After so much time, the implants have been encapsulated to some degree with scar tissue so they are not as pliable as they were right after my surgery healed. Everyone I know from that time period now has "hard as rock" breasts. Mine are softer because the surgeon at the time showed me how to pop the scar tissue and I regularly performed that exercise daily for the following decades. But I still have grown scar tissue and they are not pleasing to me. I am tall, have broad shoulders, and very narrow hips (that's another story). But I do have great hair, a bright smile, and breasts. These get me by.
If I had a smaller frame, I would not have pursued the BA procedure. Many women are almost flat chested. Personally, I've always thought it to be rather sexy because they can wear so many cute things that larger chested women can not. I consider Asian women in this regard. They are quite beautiful with smaller breasts. My daughter is very small chested and I believe her to be the most beautiful woman in the world. Of course I'm biased, but she is very beautiful.
In terms of finding the right surgeon? Ask them questions. Make a list of things that you would like to see as the results of the procedure. Do they go in through the armpit or scar your chest? Are they board certified in the procedure they are doing? How many have they performed? How long will you have to wear drains? What is the expected recovery time? How can encapsulation be prevented? There are many others you may wish to ask.
Whatever you decide to do, keep us up to date.
Chin up,
Cindi
Quote from: Roni on November 01, 2015, 12:25:24 PM
So BA is the next upcoming surgery for me. I am dumbfounded with the seemingly lack of resources and information of the procedure on these forums. There seems to be an abundance of information on FFS, voice surgery, and SRS, however.
You took the words right out of my mouth.
I too am figuring out what to do with boobs. I've grown to a largish A cup. Even a small B if I let my weight go up, which I don't.
I've been considering fat transfer breast augmentation. The biggest plus being no implants that will need to be replaced. The downside for some, fat transfer breast augmentation can only give a modest increase, only half to one cup size increase. That's fine with me too. I would be perfectly happy with a nice full B cup considering my frame.
In reading, this surgery has come a long way in recent years, and is now considered very safe.
Has anyone heard of this or researched into it recently?
Thanks for the responses everybody!
I've never considered fat grafts to the chest area.. I still think I might go with implants though, just because I don't have much fat to begin with, and any fat I do have I'll want transferred to my hips and buttocks for fat redistribution surgery.
It still seems like the few people who did look into BA got it done a long time ago with plastic surgeons. Is BA just not a priority for most trans girls today? Am I just the few unlucky ones where hormones didn't help? I don't think me waiting a couple more years is going to help develop a chest either. Both my sister and mom are A cups. We all know the general consensus with breast growth for trans women is a cup smaller than your closest female relatives... which would leave me at no cup, lol.
I think I might play it safe and go with a trans-specialized doctor. I am currently looking at Dr. Cardenas for BA. He did my FFS, but he charges 5k for BA, and I will need 1k in flight ticket costs to fly to Guadalajara, so 6k. There seem to be many surgeons in California who do the procedure for 3k-4, but I am scared they won't know how to work on trans bodies as well as Cardenas does. I have a bigger rib cage, etc.
I'll look into this more and will be sure to post about my conclusions here should I come to one.
Thanks everyone!
Roni, why don't you call Dr. Bowers' office and see if they can recommend someone? She's out there in California.
In my case, BA was more trouble that it was worth. I can live with small boob and there are advantages to not wearing a bra all the time. With large breast you will find your options to be free are pretty limited as you will need to have some form of support in thin strapped tops which look good on you.