The choice can feel surprisingly challenging, especially when you’re sorting through conflicting information online. Some sources make fat transfer sound like the obvious winner because it’s “natural.” Others dismiss it as unreliable. 

The truth, as with most things in plastic surgery, is nuanced.

At The Swan Center, our board-certified plastic surgeons have performed tens of thousands of breast procedures. Dr. Bauer alone has completed more than 50,000 breast surgeries throughout his career. That level of experience has taught our team something valuable: there is no universal best option, only the best option for a specific patient.

Understanding Your Breast Augmentation Options

Breast Implants

Breast implants are silicone shells filled with either a saline (saltwater) solution or a cohesive silicone gel. They’re placed beneath your breast tissue or chest muscle to add volume and shape. At The Swan Center, we offer a full range of breast implants, including top-of-the-line Mentor implants chosen for their exceptional safety record and natural feel.

Implants give you a high degree of control over your outcome. You can select your size, shape, material, profile, and placement. For patients wanting a substantial change or very specific aesthetic outcomes, implants deliver predictable, lasting results.

Fat Transfer Breast Augmentation

Fat transfer to the breast takes an all-natural approach. Your surgeon harvests fat from areas where you have excess (often the abdomen, flanks, or thighs), purifies it and strategically injects it into your breasts.

The appeal is obvious: you’re using your own tissue, nothing foreign. You also get the bonus of slimming the donor area. For patients seeking a modest degree of enhancement with a soft, natural feel, fat transfer can be an excellent choice.

Combining Breast Implants and Breast Fat Transfer

Breast implants and fat transfer aren’t mutually exclusive. Many patients actually benefit from combining them. 

The hybrid technique uses implants for the primary volume and structure, then adds fat to refine the result. Transferred fat can smooth visible implant edges and create softer transitions between the implant and natural tissue. The fat essentially camouflages the implant and fine-tunes the overall shape, giving you the benefits of an implant’s volume with the benefits of fat’s natural look and feel.

The Questions to Ask Yourself While You Decide

When you meet with Dr. Bauer, Dr. Fardo, or Dr. Catignani for your consultation, these are some of the topics you’ll discuss.

How Much Fuller Do You Want to Be?

This is the deciding factor for many patients.

Fat transfer can typically increase your breast size by one to two cup sizes at most. And that comes with a caveat: not all the transferred fat survives. Your body will reabsorb a portion of it over the following months, so your final result may be smaller than what you see immediately after surgery. If you’re looking for a subtle, natural result, fat transfer might be a perfect fit.

Breast implants offer more flexibility. Patients today generally request smaller implants than they did a decade or two ago. They want to look enhanced but not obviously augmented. Modern implants and surgical techniques make that very achievable, but implants can also give you a dramatic change if that’s what you’re looking for.

Do You Have Enough Fat to Harvest?

Fat transfer requires adequate donor fat. During your consultation, your surgeon will assess whether you have sufficient fat to achieve the goals you describe. Patients who are very lean may simply not have enough tissue to transfer.

If you don’t have much fat to spare, implants are the practical choice regardless of your preferences. Silicone implants often achieve the best result if you have little natural breast tissue to begin with.

What Feels More Important: Natural Tissue or Predictable Results?

Some patients feel strongly about not putting anything foreign in their bodies. If that sounds like you, using your own fat rather than an implant might be a no-brainer.  

Other patients prioritize predictability. Implants offer more certainty about your final outcome. You can try on sizers and view simulations, and implants won’t change size or shape once they’re in place. Fat transfer involves more variables, including how much fat is harvestable and how much survives the transfer.

Neither priority is right or wrong. It’s up to you to decide what you value most.

How Comfortable Are You With Scars?

Any time there’s an incision, there’s the possibility of a scar. With implants, the incision is placed so the resulting scar is easy to conceal under most clothing and swimsuits. Our surgeons typically use the inframammary approach, where the incision is hidden in the natural fold beneath the breast.

With fat transfer, there’s almost no scarring on the breasts themselves, and only small incisions are used to insert the liposuction cannula for harvesting fat. The incision lines are nearly invisible once they’re healed. If minimal scarring is a high priority for you, fat transfer has the advantage.

What About the Possibility of Future Surgery? 

Breast implants are not lifetime devices. While many women keep their implants for 10, 15, even 20 years without issue, you should go into the procedure understanding that replacement or removal is a possibility at some point in your future. 

Fat transfer eliminates implant-related complications. There’s no device that can rupture, harden or need replacing. However, fat transfer isn’t necessarily a one-and-done solution either. Because a portion of transferred fat gets reabsorbed, some patients choose to have a second fat grafting session to achieve their desired fullness. 

Neither option guarantees you’ll never need another procedure, but the nature of the potential future surgery differs.

What Risks Are You Willing to Accept?

Every surgical procedure carries some risk.  

Fat transfer tends to involve less extensive surgery with smaller incisions and typically a shorter recovery. The risks are primarily related to fat survival (unpredictable volume retention) and the possibility of fat necrosis (hardened lumps of fat that didn’t survive). There’s no risk of implant-related complications because there’s no implant.

Breast implants carry their own considerations. Capsular contracture, where scar tissue around the implant tightens and hardens, affects some patients. Implants can rupture, shift positions or become visible through the skin. There’s also increasing awareness of BIA-ALCL, a rare lymphoma associated with certain textured implants. 

Our surgeons stay current on all safety data and will discuss these considerations in detail during your consultation.

Will Your Results Stand the Test of Time? 

Both breast augmentation options are long-lasting.

Implants maintain their volume consistently over time. Your breasts won’t shrink if you lose weight or fluctuate with your body’s changes the way natural tissue does. The shape you achieve is the shape you keep, barring complications and the natural aging process.

Fat that successfully integrates into your breast tissue is there for good. However, like all fat in your body, it responds to weight fluctuations. Gain weight, and your breasts may grow. Lose weight, and you may lose some of that enhanced volume.

Consider your lifestyle and the kind of stability you want from your results.

What Our Breast Augmentation Patients Say

We could tell you that our patients leave happy, but we prefer to let them say it themselves:  

“Dr. Bauer saw my vision and he made it happen. My breasts look very natural and proportional to my body. This has given me a newfound confidence and I thank Dr. Bauer and his staff for all of their support.” — Van N.

“Having breast augmentation was one of the best decisions I’ve made for MYSELF!! I worked hard and lost a lot of weight on my own. I wanted to bring some curve and balance to my upper half. We went for a sexy yet conservative size and I could not be happier!!” — Sarah S.

“Dr. Fardo did my breast augmentation in September of 2022 and I couldn’t be happier! He came highly recommended from so many ladies I spoke with and he did not disappoint. I feel comfortable in my own skin now (after 3 babies). Forever thankful!!” — Katherine A.

“After three (breastfed) children I decided to get a breast augmentation. It was the best decision I could have made! I am back to feeling myself and more confident than ever! They look so natural and I couldn’t have asked for a better experience.” — Amanda

“​​I’m obsessed with my results, they are even better than I could have imagined! Dr. Cat truly listened to what I wanted and delivered exactly that, while also using her expertise to make the best decisions for my body. Her eye for aesthetics is incredibly refined, and it’s clear she is an absolute expert in her field.” — Eve Y.

You can read more patient reviews and browse our before-and-after gallery to see the natural-looking results our surgeons achieve.

Schedule Your Breast Augmentation Consultation

Ready to explore your options with experienced, expert surgeons who can guide you with confidence? The Swan Center has been Atlanta’s trusted destination for breast surgery for more than 30 years. Call us at 770-667-0904 or contact us online to schedule your consultation.

Your beautiful, natural-looking results are waiting.

Related Resources:

• Interview With a Breast Augmentation Expert: Dr. Joseph G. Bauer
• Atlanta Plastic Surgeon Dr. Cat Shares 5 Secrets to Beautiful Breast Augmentation Results
• In the Age of the Bralette, Where Does Breast Augmentation Fit In?
• Breast Augmentation FAQ