I visited Foret for a consultation about breast filler removal and reconstruction. About 10 years ago, I received hyaluronic-acid breast filler. It was so long ago that I do not remember the exact amount injected, and the clinic where I had the procedure no longer exists.
As time passed, the filler did not remain in one area but spread widely throughout both breasts and the cleavage area. While looking into how to remove the old filler, I was coincidentally diagnosed with right breast cancer. However, my attending professor explained that there was no direct association between the breast filler and breast cancer.
I was diagnosed with right breast cancer in April 2025 and underwent breast-cancer surgery in May 2025. I then completed four cycles of chemotherapy and, in November 2025, completed 16 sessions of radiation therapy.
After completing all cancer treatment, my right breast gradually became hard and developed contracture, substantially changing its shape. The greatest concerns were the depression at the breast-cancer surgery site and asymmetry between the two sides. Because the old breast filler had already spread widely, my situation was very different from ordinary breast augmentation, and I was not even sure whether simply inserting implants could solve it.
I therefore consulted at several hospitals, and a university hospital even recommended total mastectomy followed by reconstruction. Having already gone through cancer treatment once, the prospect of another major surgery was overwhelming. I kept deliberating over whether there was a way to improve the current contracture and depression while preserving as much remaining normal breast tissue as possible.
Then I consulted Dr. Kim Min-young at Foret Plastic Surgery.
What impressed me most was that the doctor did not view my breasts as those of a typical breast-augmentation patient. The doctor explained everything while considering together that I had undergone breast-cancer surgery, that radiation therapy had hardened the tissue on the right side, that the old hyaluronic-acid filler had spread throughout the breasts and into the cleavage area, and that I had depression and asymmetry after breast-cancer surgery.
Rather than telling me only positive things, the doctor also honestly explained my limitations. Because the irradiated right breast is in a different condition from the normal tissue on the left, there could still be some difference in feel and shape after surgery. Even if the contracted tissue is released, it may not immediately become soft like normal tissue, and time may be needed.
The doctor also explained that, because old filler is widely spread in the breasts, forcibly removing all of it could damage normal tissue. In particular, removing filler in the cleavage area could damage tissue or cause adhesions, so the actual intraoperative condition would need to be assessed and decisions made within a safe range.
What mattered most to me was not simply reconstruction, but creating the most natural and beautiful shape possible. The doctor planned surgery to preserve as much existing normal tissue as possible, release the areas with capsular contracture caused by breast-cancer surgery and radiation therapy as needed, and sufficiently expand the depressed areas to preserve overall shape and volume as much as possible.
I was especially worried whether the hard, depressed areas could be properly released. The doctor said that, in addition to standard breast-surgery methods, the depressed areas could be precisely dissected endoscopically, together with a balloon-assisted dissection technique.
The greatest benefit I felt during the consultation was that the doctor explained every question I asked in detail and in an easy-to-understand manner. In a case like mine, where breast-cancer surgery, radiation therapy, old breast filler, contracture, and depression all overlap, I had many worries. But distinguishing what was possible from what was difficult actually put me at ease.
Since some other hospitals had discussed total mastectomy followed by reconstruction, I deliberated until the end. However, I wanted to preserve normal breast tissue as much as possible while improving the current contracture and depression, and I did not want to give up the aesthetic aspect either.
At the Foret consultation, they fully understood my wishes. Rather than guaranteeing results unrealistically, they explained that they would aim for the best possible outcome given my current tissue condition, which led me to decide on surgery.
While consulting at several hospitals, what I considered most important was not just surgical experience, but how accurately they understood my situation and whether they established a realistic surgical plan. During the consultation, the doctor checked my condition very thoroughly and listened carefully to my concerns from my perspective. That had the greatest influence on my decision.
I have not had surgery yet, so I do not know the final result, but I hope my right breast, which changed after breast-cancer treatment, can regain a natural appearance.
If anyone with a difficult case like mine is deliberating over breast filler removal and reconstruction, please make sure to consult at Foret at least once!! I consulted at several hospitals, but they examined my situation most carefully and honestly explained even the practical aspects, so I truly felt I could trust them.