Fat transfer to the breast in Seoul: four clinics compared

Fat transfer to the breast takes fat from elsewhere in the body by liposuction, purifies it and injects it into the breast. Used alone it adds modest volume with no implant; used with an implant, in what clinics call a hybrid augmentation, it softens the edges the implant would otherwise show. Not all of the fat survives, and the fat that dies can show up on later mammograms. This page sets out what four Seoul clinics that offer it to patients from abroad publish about it, under the same headings for each, and what none of them publishes. For implants alone, see breast augmentation in Seoul: four clinics compared.

DA, MINE and Seojin appeared in English search results for fat transfer, fat grafting and hybrid breast augmentation in Korea and have English pages about it. All four are in Gangnam-gu, and the Health Insurance Review and Assessment Service (HIRA) lists all four as clinics (의원) rather than hospitals. Everything below comes from the clinics’ own pages, read on 1 October 2026, from HIRA’s record of the doctors each reports, from the member directory of the Korean Society of Plastic and Reconstructive Surgeons (KSPRS), and from the sources listed at the foot of the page.

What fat can and cannot do

According to the American Society of Plastic Surgeons (ASPS), fat transfer is a breast augmentation option suited to women who want a fairly modest size increase and favour results that look natural. On its safety page, the society names cysts, infection, microcalcification, fat cell death and the loss of part of the transferred fat, and cautions that further injections may be required to maintain the shape.

What proportion of the fat remains is the key issue, and what has been published gives a range of answers. A 2016 systematic review covering 22 studies and 3,565 patients, with a mean follow-up of at least one year in every study, reported a mean volume retention of 62.4 per cent, with individual studies spanning 44.7 to 82.6 per cent, alongside a complication rate of 17.2 per cent. A 2024 review of 35 studies and 3,757 women reported an average retention of 58 per cent, ranging from 44 to 83 per cent, and a complication rate of 27.8 per cent, of which fat necrosis accounted for 43.7 per cent. Both reviews pool mainly non-randomised series that measured volume in differing ways, so the averages describe published studies, not what any one patient will keep. The 2024 review found greater retention when fat was supplemented with platelet-rich plasma (PRP) or stromal vascular fraction, a cell-rich extract of fat, and states that these may improve survival. Seoul National University Hospital’s patient information on fat grafting states that attempts to raise survival using stem cells or blood-derived additives remain under discussion, and that since not all the fat survives, a second graft is sometimes required. In Korea, the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety classes cells that are cultured or otherwise manipulated outside the body as medicines, so if a clinic offers “stem cell” fat, ask what exactly that step involves.

The other question is screening. In 1987 ASPS, then called the American Society of Plastic and Reconstructive Surgeons, advised against fat injection for breast augmentation, citing the possibility that it could hinder cancer detection; by 2009 its task force found limited data suggesting fat grafts may not interfere with imaging, according to the society’s own account. The studies since then point in different directions. In the 2016 review, mammograms showed microcalcifications in 9.0 per cent and macrocalcifications in 7.0 per cent. A blinded comparison of mammograms taken 12 months after surgery, in 27 women with normal mammograms beforehand who had fat mixed with their own fat-derived stem cells grafted for augmentation and 23 women after breast reduction, found fewer abnormalities overall in the fat-grafted group, but no significant difference in oil cysts, benign calcifications or calcifications needing biopsy. A series of 48 patients from two Beijing hospitals found clustered microcalcifications in eight (16.7 per cent) that looked like those of breast cancer; biopsy showed fat necrosis in every case. The practical advice is the same either way: ask your doctor whether you should have a mammogram before the operation, and tell every future radiologist about the graft.

How the four compare

Each clinic is set out under the same eight headings: who operates, what it offers, how much fat it says survives, what it says about screening afterwards, anaesthesia and stay, price, what it offers patients from abroad, and public records. U&U comes first, and the other three follow in alphabetical order.

U&U Plastic Surgery

Who operates. U&U (유앤유성형외과의원) is in the Myungkwang Building, 819 Nonhyeon-ro, five minutes from exit 4 of Apgujeong Station on Line 3. It treats only breasts and dates its opening to June 2020. Its Korean fat transfer page says a plastic surgery specialist operates, a general surgeon subspecialised in breast disease is on site, and an anaesthesiology specialist gives the anaesthetic; it does not say which of its surgeons performs the graft. Both language versions name the chief director, Dr Kikap Kim, as the medical reviewer. The staff page lists three board-certified plastic surgeons: Dr Kim, Dr Jeonghwa Seo and Dr Yunggi Lee. The English fat page leaves out the Korean page’s section on who operates, and its link to the Korean version leads to the home page.

What it offers. The English fat transfer page sets out three paths: fat alone, for a very gentle addition of volume where absorption is acceptable; a hybrid, in which an implant builds the volume and shape and fat softens the edges; and an implant alone. It says U&U performs the hybrid. It then says that, because fat that dies can leave oil cysts and calcification and makes later breast imaging harder to read, “we do not use fat transfer to enlarge the breast”, and limits fat to covering an implant edge where the tissue is thin and softening the line. The Korean page adds that choosing the right pocket for the implant often makes fat unnecessary. Yet the English and Korean home pages list autologous fat grafting under small breasts, so ask whether U&U will do fat alone before planning around it. The page does not recommend fat where body fat is too scarce to harvest, where the change you want is a cup or more, or where the problem is sagging rather than volume.

How much survives. The page states outright that not all of the fat lasts and that the upper and lower breast absorb it differently, and it explains that it gives take “by nature rather than numbers” since individual variation is great. A clinic column does provide figures, around 50 per cent absorbed with ordinary fat grafting and 70 to 95 per cent retained after a year with stem-cell fat grafting, without naming a source. According to the page, one session is sometimes sufficient and several may be required for a larger change, and it cannot promise in advance how many. It says it mostly takes fat from accessory breast tissue, since thigh and abdominal fat differs in texture from breast tissue and takes less well; no study is cited for this. Among the director’s publications on the home page is a 2019 paper with a title about stem cells and fat grafts on wrinkles; the published title ends “in Aged Mice”, and the study concerns skin in mice, not breast grafting.

Screening afterwards. U&U checks the breast by blood test and ultrasound before surgery, records the state of the graft by ultrasound before and after, and runs breast ultrasound and Mammotome biopsy in the clinic. It says calcification or lumps may need extra work-up on later imaging, that screening remains possible but the images are read differently, and that you should always tell future screening about the graft.

Anaesthesia and stay. The fat pages do not specify the anaesthetic type, operating time or length of stay; U&U’s implant pages give general anaesthesia, a procedure time of under an hour and discharge on the same day. Patients can have their consultation, tests and surgery on the same day. The aftercare list tells you to avoid pressure on your breasts and rapid weight loss, stop smoking, and send progress photographs after you fly home. No figure is given for time in Seoul; the clinic’s travel page says the stay depends on the number of post-operative checks before you fly.

Price. Not published. The English cost page says the bill includes extra items when fat transfer is added. A Korean column quotes a general market range of 6 to 10 million won for stem-cell fat grafting, without presenting this as U&U’s own price.

Patients from abroad. The website is available in nine languages, and online consultations are offered in those same languages; front and side photographs suffice for the clinic to recommend fat, hybrid or implant. According to the travel page, on-site interpretation is not guaranteed in every language at all times.

Public records. HIRA lists seven doctors: three plastic surgery specialists, three anaesthesiology specialists and one general surgery specialist, one anaesthesiologist fewer than the staff page. The KSPRS directory lists Dr Kim and Dr Seo at U&U, and Dr Lee at another clinic in Seocho-gu that U&U’s staff page gives as his previous post. The medicalkorea registry has an active record for its business number.

DA Plastic Surgery

Who operates. DA (디에이성형외과의원) occupies several floors of a building at 125 Teheran-ro, three minutes from exit 12 of Gangnam Station. It is a multi-specialty clinic, and its history page dates the opening to August 2013. The English fat grafting page names no surgeon. The Korean breast site names a breast team of three, Dr Koo Hyun Kook, Dr Bae Jae Young and Dr Yoo Hyo Kyung, for implant surgery; their profiles list society memberships without the words “plastic surgery specialist”, although all three appear in the KSPRS directory.

What it offers. Fat alone, for those who do not want an implant, with a recommended 250 to 350 cc; the page does not say whether that is per breast or in total, and the Japanese version says at least 250 to 300 cc. Combining fat with an implant is not described, though the page says implants can be added later. Fat grafting to the breast appears on the English, Japanese and Chinese sites but not on the Korean breast site.

How much survives. The breast page gives no figure; it says satisfaction depends on how much fat survives and that the fat that engrafts stays for life. The clinic’s general FAQ claims stem cells raise survival from roughly 20 to 30 per cent to 70 to 80 per cent. The page says PRP or stem cells can be added, and that fat is placed under the skin, in the muscle and under the muscle. Sessions and donor sites are not stated for the breast.

Screening afterwards. The page says the graft “will not interfere with the breast examination”. It adds that transferred fat can look similar to calcification but is easily recognised by the doctors doing the examination. It does not discuss oil cysts or mammography after grafting, and warns that over-grafting can leave the breast harder.

Anaesthesia and stay. Two hours, no stitches to remove, three to four days’ recovery. The English page gives local anaesthesia; the Japanese and Chinese versions of the same page give sedation. Discharge and time in Seoul are not stated for fat grafting.

Price. Not published.

Patients from abroad. Interpretation in eight languages, a foreign patient desk, a limousine service and contact through WhatsApp, KakaoTalk or LINE. The Korean site offers a private room, at extra cost, to patients from abroad who need to stay in.

Public records. HIRA lists 39 doctors, including 24 plastic surgery specialists and nine anaesthesiology specialists. The Korean breast site advertises a breast surgery specialist (유방외과 전문의); HIRA lists no general surgery specialist. The medicalkorea registry has an active record for its business number.

MINE Plastic Surgery

Who operates. MINE (마인성형외과의원) is on the fourth floor of 813 Nonhyeon-ro, a few doors from U&U and seven minutes from exit 4 of Apgujeong Station. Its pages do not give an opening year. The fat grafting page names no surgeon. The staff page lists one plastic surgeon, Dr Lee Sung Wook, described as a board-certified plastic surgery specialist, whose byline is on the clinic’s Korean articles about fat grafting, and an anaesthesiology specialist.

What it offers. Fat alone, for those who do not want implants, and fat with implants. Fat is taken from the thighs or abdomen with a water-jet device and filtered; the page says high-speed centrifuging damages fat cells, although two of the clinic’s own articles describe spinning the fat at 3,000 rpm for three minutes. Stem cells, PRP and an external expansion device are offered as additions, and a 3D scanner is used for planning.

How much survives. The procedure page claims survival of “above 50-60%”, against below 50 per cent for standard grafting. The clinic’s articles give other figures, from 50 to 70 per cent up to 70 to 80 per cent, and the director’s own Korean article warns that promising an average survival rate is risky. The procedure page lists one session; an English article says two or three procedures may be needed. Volume is not stated on the procedure page; articles give 100 to 200 cc or 150 to 300 cc per breast.

Screening afterwards. Ultrasound takes place before and after surgery. The procedure page claims oil cysts and calcification “hardly ever occur”. A clinic article advises patients to get a baseline mammogram before surgery and to tell the radiologist afterwards, while the procedure page does not.

Anaesthesia and stay. About an hour under sedation, discharge on the day, daily activity after three to four days; the clinic’s articles give two to three hours under sedation or general anaesthesia, and four to six weeks of compression on the liposuction sites. No figure is given for time in Seoul.

Price. Not published.

Patients from abroad. Translation in English, Chinese, Indonesian, Thai, Vietnamese and Japanese, airport transfers, hotel booking and a WhatsApp number. The international page says a tax return of 7 to 9 per cent is possible at the airport; the VAT refund on cosmetic surgery for foreign patients ended on 31 December 2025, so ask what the clinic means.

Public records. HIRA lists one doctor, a plastic surgery specialist, and no inpatient beds, although the clinic names an anaesthesiologist. Dr Lee is listed under the clinic in the KSPRS directory. The medicalkorea registry has an active record for its business number.

Seojin Plastic Surgery

Who operates. Seojin (서진성형외과의원) occupies the eighth floor of the EGI Building at 843 Nonhyeon-ro, roughly a minute’s walk from exit 4 of Apgujeong Station. No opening year appears on its pages. According to the clinic, one surgeon, Dr Lee Hyungmin, heads the practice; he is described as a board-certified plastic surgery specialist and a member of a Korean society for fat surgery and fat-derived stem cells, and he carries out every operation himself. A board-certified anaesthesiologist, Dr Park Haekyun, is also named.

What it offers. Hybrid augmentation is the subject of its English page: a small amount of fat to smooth the contours, hide implant edges and soften the upper slope, for very thin patients, those lacking upper-breast volume, and those with an uneven chest wall. It offers what it calls its “UU+ method”, fat combined with PRP, and a finely processed “nanofat” option; its home page uses “UU+” for a dual-plane implant technique instead. No page describes fat alone for the breast.

How much survives. No figure. The page claims the PRP method significantly improves retention. Sessions, donor sites and volume are not stated.

Screening afterwards. Ultrasound before surgery and, according to the English precautions page, at six months and two years; the Korean page gives six months. Both describe checking the implant. Mammography, calcification and oil cysts are not mentioned.

Anaesthesia and stay. The Korean hybrid page includes a general anaesthesia fee among its included costs. Operating time is not stated. Its augmentation aftercare page says dressings and the pain pump come off the day after surgery and stitches in the first week, and advises rest for one to two weeks. The consultation page describes a follow-up the next day before you enjoy the city; no figure is given for time in Seoul.

Price. Not published. The Korean page lists what the price includes, without a figure: general anaesthesia, pre-operative tests, a support bra, four weeks of aftercare, the pain pump and scar ointment.

Patients from abroad. Bilingual staff and an interpreter are available, as are WhatsApp and email. A nearby radiology clinic can do a pre-operative X-ray and ECG, then send the results.

Public records. HIRA lists one doctor, a plastic surgery specialist, and one operating room, although the clinic names an anaesthesiologist. Dr Lee is listed under the clinic in the KSPRS directory. The medicalkorea registry has an active record for its business number.

Side by side

What none of the pages answers

No price for fat transfer is published by any of the four clinics, and none states how long a patient should remain in Seoul afterwards. Where survival figures do appear, no source is given. Before you pay a deposit, obtain the following in writing:

• Whether you are being offered fat alone or a hybrid, the amount of fat going into each breast and how much the surgeon expects to remain.
• How many sessions are likely, how much time will pass between them, what each one costs and whether a further graft would require another trip to Seoul.
• What any “stem cell” or PRP step involves, whether cells are cultured, and what evidence the clinic has for it.
• Who performs the liposuction and the graft and who gives the anaesthetic, by name, and what kind of anaesthesia it will be. Our piece on ghost surgery explains why the name matters in Korea.
• What imaging the clinic does before and after, and whether you leave with a record of it for the radiologist at home.
• How long to stay in Seoul, as distinct from when you leave the clinic. How long to stay in Korea for surgery sets out the general reasoning.

How to choose a clinic in Korea addresses how to confirm a surgeon holds specialist certification, while the cost guide sets out the reasons Korean surgery prices are so rarely made public. The checklist converts the questions above into a single page that you can carry with you into the consultation.