Breast aesthetic surgery covers three operations that are often confused with one another: augmentation, using an implant or transferred fat; reduction, which removes gland and skin; and a lift, which raises the breast without changing its volume. Which one applies is decided by anatomy, skin quality and the position of the areola, not by preference alone. This page is about augmentation. Breast lift and breast reduction have their own pages.
A breast that has dropped but has enough volume needs a lift; adding an implant to slack skin often makes the droop worse. A heavy, painful breast points towards reduction. Augmentation is for breasts that are small, have lost volume after pregnancy or weight loss, or differ in size, and where the skin envelope can hold what is added.
Who augmentation suits, and who should wait
Good candidates are adults in stable health, at a stable weight, with realistic goals and a clear sense of the size and shape they want, not a number of millilitres seen online. Your chest width, the thickness of your skin and breast tissue, and the distance from the nipple to the fold under the breast set the limits of what will look natural and last.
- Planning a pregnancy soon: pregnancy and breastfeeding change the breast again; many people prefer to wait.
- Marked sagging: an implant alone may not be enough. A lift, or a combined lift with implant, may be discussed instead.
- Breast symptoms or an overdue screening: any lump, discharge or change, and any screening due for your age, should be dealt with before surgery, not after.
- Smoking: it impairs healing and raises the risk of complications. Stopping well before and after surgery is strongly advised.
- Family history of breast cancer: it needs to be discussed openly, with your screening plan for the years ahead.
Implant or fat: how augmentation is done
Augmentation is performed under general anaesthesia. An implant operation usually takes one to two hours; fat transfer takes longer, often up to three hours, because of the liposuction.
Implants
Most implants used today are filled with cohesive silicone gel; saline implants are another option. Shapes are round or anatomical (teardrop), and surfaces smooth or textured. The implant can be placed above the muscle, beneath it, or in a dual-plane position partly under it; the choice depends on how much natural tissue covers the upper breast. The incision is usually in the fold beneath the breast, sometimes around the areola or in the armpit. An implant is not a lifetime device: revision at some point is realistic and belongs in the budget from the start, not as a surprise later.
Fat transfer
Fat is taken by liposuction from the abdomen, flanks or thighs, purified and injected in small amounts into the breast. Fat transfer needs a donor area and gives a moderate gain, part of which may be reabsorbed, so a second session is sometimes planned. It suits people who want a modest change, have enough fat to spare, and accept a less predictable volume.
One safety point
Regulators specifically warn against injecting dermal fillers into the breast. No filler is intended for breast augmentation, whatever is advertised online or offered at a lower price. This is one of the areas where the shortcut is genuinely dangerous.
Five to seven days in Istanbul
- Day 1: arrival, transfer to the hotel, consultation with measurements, sizing and photographs, then blood tests and an anaesthetic assessment.
- Day 2: the operation, usually with one night in the clinic. You wake up wearing a surgical bra.
- Days 3 to 4: rest at the hotel, short walks several times a day to protect your circulation, and a first check of the wounds and dressing.
- Days 5 to 7: a final review, instructions for the bra and wound care, and a fit-to-fly decision. Aviation guidance suggests waiting five to seven days after breast surgery before flying, and travel-related clot risk rises on flights over four hours, with recent surgery being a risk factor in itself. Plan the journey home as carefully as the journey out.
What your written quote should cover
Esthappy organises the consultation, surgeon and clinic fees, hotel, transfers and an interpreter. The quote lists exactly what is included. For augmentation, check that it names the type of implant, the manufacturer's implant card you will receive, the night in the clinic, tests, the surgical bra, medication, the checks during your stay and the follow-up afterwards. Ask what the quotation covers if a revision becomes necessary, and for how long.
Recovery, week by week
- Week 1: tightness and aching across the chest, stronger when implants sit under the muscle. Arms are kept low; no lifting.
- Weeks 1 to 2: most people return to desk work. Driving resumes once you can turn and brake comfortably without pain relief that causes drowsiness.
- Weeks 3 to 6: the support bra is worn day and night as advised. Gentle exercise returns progressively; heavy upper-body training waits until about six weeks.
- Months 2 to 6: implants settle lower and the breast softens. The upper pole looks less full and the shape becomes more natural.
- Months 6 to 12: scars fade from pink to pale; the result is judged once they have matured. After fat transfer, the volume that remains at about six months is broadly what stays.
Risks, and how they are reduced
General surgical risks include bleeding, haematoma, infection, poor wound healing and blood clots. Risks specific to implants include capsular contracture (hardening of the scar tissue around the implant), rupture, rippling, displacement and changes in nipple sensation. Breast implant-associated anaplastic large cell lymphoma is a rare cancer of the immune system, linked mainly to textured implants; ask which surface is planned and why. Some people report general symptoms they attribute to their implants; the cause is not established, and removal is discussed case by case. Fat transfer can leave small oil cysts or calcifications that may need to be identified on imaging.
Risks are lowered by careful patient selection, sterile technique, choosing an implant size your tissue can carry, stopping smoking, walking early and following the bra and activity instructions. Infections are among the most frequently reported problems in health tourism, so make sure your vaccinations, including hepatitis B, are up to date, and arrange a follow-up doctor at home before you travel.
Questions to ask before booking
- Who operates, and what is their training?
- Which implant type, size, surface and placement do you suggest, and why for my body?
- Will my before and after photographs be taken at the same distance, in the same light and posture? Pictures taken in different conditions cannot be compared.
- How might the operation affect breastfeeding and future breast screening?
- What does the quotation cover if a revision becomes necessary?
- How will follow-up work once I am home?
Once you are home
Leave with a full operative report that states the exact implant reference, along with the implant card and your discharge summary. Keep them for life: they are needed for any future imaging, revision or safety notice. Follow-up continues remotely by photographs and messages at agreed intervals.
A rupture of a silicone implant does not always cause symptoms, which is why regulators recommend periodic ultrasound or MRI checks starting a few years after surgery. Agree this schedule with your doctor at home and keep the results with your operative report.
See a local doctor promptly if one breast swells suddenly, if you develop fever, spreading redness or discharge from a wound, or if you notice calf pain or breathlessness. Later on, tell any radiographer that you have implants, keep up with the screening recommended for your age, and have any late swelling, hardening or change in shape checked.