Europeans Try Stem Cell-Enriched Fat Grafting For Breast Reconstruction
Cytori Therapeutics recently announced the European approval (CE mark) of its Celution System, a breakthrough new device that promises to expand the applications of autologous fat grafting to breast reconstruction and targeted healing for wounds, such as those caused by Crohn’s disease.
The Celution System has not only made possible new applications for reconstructive fat grafting, it can also be used for fat graft preparation in cosmetic fat grafting procedures, such as facial fat transfer for volume restoration and wrinkle treatment and buttocks augmentation.
Fat grafting with the Celution System
The fat grafting process first requires that fat tissue be removed from some part of a patient’s body, such as the abdomen or thighs, prior to being injected or transferred to another location on the patient, such as the face or buttocks.
Once the fat has been harvested in this manner, it is introduced into a machine like Cytori’s PureGraft System, which is an FDA-approved device that purifies fat grafts of 50 to 250 mL by removing excess and unwanted fluid, lipid, blood cells and debris in a controlled manner.
The Celution System then takes over, extracting stem cells from the purified fat graft. Once the regenerative and stem cells have been extracted, the Celution System multiplies them and reintroduces them into the fat graft.
Celution System European trials
Prior to receiving the CE mark, the Celution System underwent trials wherein the majority of patients and physicians were satisfied with results six months and one year after breast reconstruction via stem cell-enriched fat grafting.
Satisfaction rate after six months (51 patients):
- Patients – 73%
- Physicians – 84%
Satisfaction rate after one year (30 patients):
- Patients – 70%
- Physicians – 90%
There is still significant research to be done on the viability of stem cell-enriched fat grafting for breast reconstruction, however these initial results look promising.
The future of stem cell-enriched fat grafting
Some surgeons are already experimenting with fat grafting as a means of breast augmentation and breast reconstruction in the U.S., however this is still highly experimental and much more extensive testing will be required before aesthetic outcomes are considered consistent enough to replace currently accepted methods of breast augmentation and breast reconstruction.
All breast reconstruction procedures require a tremendous amount of skill to perform effectively and produce pleasing, natural-looking aesthetic outcomes. Be sure to seek a highly experienced Manhattan plastic surgeon with proven breast reconstruction expertise before considering reconstructive breast surgery after full or partial mastectomy.
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