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Plastic surgery can dramatically improve your life—and every so often, I receive a patient testimonial that reminds me of why I am so passionate about this field of medicine.
A few years ago, a middle aged man sat in my office asking if there was a solution to a problem that had impacted every area of his life—enlarged male breast tissue, a condition known as gynecomastia. This condition affects a large portion of the male population, yet it is rarely discussed.
This poignant, honest review comes from a brave patient who proves that no matter your age, you can change your life.
Real Male Breast Reduction Patient Testimonial
“I am currently in my early 50s and I have suffered from gynecomastia since I was a pre-teenager. In the year 2011 Dr. Buford successfully corrected this deformity by performing two surgical procedures during one single operation. He performed liposuction which removed excess fatty tissue from my chest. He also cut away part of an enlarged fibrous gland in my chest, called the subareolar disk, thereby reducing the size of this dense glandular tissue.
Before I met with Dr. Buford I consulted with four other plastic surgeons. All four of the other doctors told me that I did have some excess fatty tissue in my chest, and some of this fat could be removed with liposuction. They also told me that the glandular tissue in my chest was not enlarged; therefore they would not have to surgically remove any of the glandular tissue (this statement that the other doctors made about my glandular tissue not being enlarged is a misdiagnosis). Also, three out of the four other doctors tried to lower my expectations for a good result because they told me that if I elected to have the operation I could only expect a small reduction in the size of my chest. Only one of the other doctors told me that I would get a good result.
Since I had no way of knowing I had been misdiagnosed and I really wanted my gynecomastia problem corrected I signed up with the doctor who told me I would get a good result to perform the liposuction procedure. Because this doctor performed liposuction only and didn’t also reduce the size of the glandular tissue the result, although clearly an improvement, was disappointing. The right side of my chest looked better, but the left side was only slightly improved and was still too large. I brought this to the doctor’s attention and he operated on my left chest a second time, but still the result was not very good, the left side of my chest was still too large. When I told the doctor that the left side was still too large he told me that the difference in size was within tolerance and insinuated that I should be satisfied with the results. It was clear to me at this point that this doctor was either unwilling or unable to correct the problem, and I would need to look elsewhere if I expected help.
Finally I found Dr. Buford and he was able to successfully perform this operation and has given me results that are far better than anything I expected. Dr. Buford had a different approach because while the four other doctors insisted that my glandular tissue was not enlarged, during his first examination of my chest Dr. Buford positively understood that the opposite was true and if this gland was not reduced in size I would never get a satisfactory result. The successful result of my operation clearly proves that Dr. Buford’s diagnosis was the only one that was correct. So essentially all four of these other doctors misdiagnosed my problem and told me that I only needed to have half of the surgical work that I really needed. I find this both amazing and frustrating that four surgeons, all of whom are highly educated and experienced in plastic surgery, cannot diagnose a condition that they are supposedly experts in. In retrospect, it is now clear to me why they had such low expectations for a satisfactory result; these other doctors get substandard results because they are only doing half their job. What sets Dr. Buford apart from these other doctors is that he knows how to diagnose this problem and then he does everything that has to be done to fix it.
I would like to take a moment to describe the results of the operation performed by Dr. Buford. The results greatly exceeded my expectations. The majority of the soft tissue that was on my chest is now gone, and there is now a much smaller volume of soft tissue remaining. Even the right side which seemed satisfactory after the other doctor operated on it has been reduced in size and looks much better.
I am really happy with the way my chest looks now. For the first time my chest has a normal male shape to it. I had developed a neck problem because having gynecomastia had caused me to be self conscious and I used to always hunch my shoulders up and forward and slouch over in an attempt to try and hide the condition. I knew I needed to stand up straight in order to correct my neck problem, but no matter how much I concentrated and tried to straighten up when I walked or stood, once I stopped paying attention to my posture I eventually found myself hunching and slouching forward and my neck problem would persist. Now I’m not self conscious anymore, I stand up straight even when I’m in a locker room and my shirt is off, and my neck pain is gone.
One of the best benefits of this operation is that I physically feel so much better now. I hated the physical feeling of this deformity bulging out of my chest, it was always there and I was never able to get used to it. Feeling like this would frequently put me in a bad frame of mind, and I’m ashamed to admit that I was short tempered and irritable around my wife and daughter because my body felt so bad. Now I don’t feel that way anymore, I feel normal. It’s hard for me to explain, but for the first time in my life I feel like myself. Because I now feel so much better physically my disposition has improved, I’m much happier, and I am now a better, more patient husband and father.
I have made some dangerous errors in the past by trying to improve my gynecomastia condition, and these mistakes had caused me to suffer some permanent injuries. I’d like to share a few of these in the hope that other men won’t make these same mistakes:
When I was in my teens, twenties and thirties, thinking that I could somehow make the soft tissue on my chest firm up, I used to bench press and do other chest and arm strengthening exercises with weights that were too heavy for my size and frame, and I would frequently do forced repetitions to failure. For the short term this approach did make me stronger which felt good, and in a way my body did actually look better because my muscle size increased, however this strenuous weight lifting routine did nothing to correct my gynecomastia problem. The reason is because no matter how much weight a person lifts or how many repetitions a person does it is not possible to turn fat and glandular tissue into muscle. In the long run all I did by over doing it in the weight lifting gym year after year was injure my elbows and shoulders, and I now have to live with these permanent joint injuries.
I remember there was one year when I took an even more dangerous approach to try to correct my gynecomastia problem. I significantly reduced my caloric intake and participated in endurance sports during the hottest hours of the summer days six or sometimes seven days a week hoping I could somehow “sweat” or “burn” the problem away. I’m already thin, and this strenuous cardiovascular exercise regimen caused me to lose even more weight and I ended up being about ten pounds underweight which is dangerous to anyone’s health on several levels. I believe this approach almost killed me because during this time I developed a serious problem in my digestive system (I won’t go into the details) and I needed an emergency operation to have a small section of my large and small intestines and my ileocecal valve removed in order to save my life. I believe this intestinal problem was a result of not eating properly and overworking myself in the heat. Furthermore, this low calorie, high cardiovascular exercise approach did nothing to reduce my chest size. Although my waist size did get smaller, I don’t think I lost any fat from my chest at all, and if I did I lost so little that I couldn’t tell the difference. Also, no matter how little I ate, or how much cardiovascular exercise I did in the heat, it could never cause the glandular tissue in my chest to reduce in size because the glandular tissue is not fat, it is a dense fibrous gland and is not affected whatsoever by diet or exercise.
I’ve taken the time to write this testimonial to Dr. Buford because I have spent my life struggling with this condition and I sympathize with every guy out there that is also afflicted with it. If you suffer from gynecomastia and are searching for a way to correct it please take this opportunity to learn from my mistakes. Don’t overwork yourself in the weight lifting gym or through endurance sports and end up permanently injuring yourself or almost getting yourself killed. Also, if you choose to surgically correct it like I have you’re going to need a good doctor like Dr. Buford; you cannot just pick any doctor to perform the operation because you could be misdiagnosed like I was. Remember, Dr. Buford was the fifth doctor I met with, and he was the only one out of the five that could correctly diagnose and therefore fix the problem.
I have read that other men that have gynecomastia are embarrassed like I was which makes it something that none of us ever want to talk about. However, it is important to realize that we now live in an era when this can be treated like a curable medical condition. Although it sounds too good to be true, in reality there is a solution to your problem, you do not have to suffer with this for the rest of your life.
Not counting my decision to have a family, when compared to all the other decisions I have made to try to improve my own personal life including participating in and excelling at extreme sports, buying the latest sports equipment, buying new cars, traveling, and everything else that I have ever done for myself, choosing to have this surgery is by far the best decision I have ever made. I did not think it was possible for my chest to be changed into a normal male chest, and I will always owe Dr. Buford a most sincere debt of gratitude for alleviating this burden from me. This may sound a bit bizarre coming from someone that’s over 50 years old, but I feel that my best years are now ahead of me, and I owe this to Dr. Buford.
Speaking as a satisfied patient of Dr. Buford, and in the hope that other men can find relief from a problem that I had been burdened with for over forty five years, if you are seeking a cure for gynecomastia I wholeheartedly recommend Dr. Buford, and I would like to strongly suggest that you meet with him to discuss your condition and to see if he can help you.”
Ready for a Change? Start Here:
If this patient’s experience sounds familiar, it may be time for you to meet with a board certified plastic surgeon who has extensive experience in male breast reduction surgery. As a plastic surgeon, there is no greater feeling that seeing how a patient transforms once they are able to feel truly comfortable in their skin. If you would like to know more about gynecomastia or your treatment options, please contact us today to schedule a consultation. I would be honored to help you.