Times of India
23 July 2010
By Jyoti Shela
Mumbai, India

With an increasing number of women getting comestic breast surgeries done at civic hospitals in the city, Parel’s KEM Hospital is holding a day–long workshop on ‘aesthetic breast surgery’ for its doctors on Sunday. Experts will conduct four live breast surgeries to offer exposure to post–graduate medical students and about 70 other plastic surgeons from across the country.

The need to hold the workshop was felt as not many seem to be aware that such surgeries are done in civic hospitals. “Though we get more women demanding these surgeries, the number is still comparatively very less,” said Dr Vinita Puri, head, department of plastic surgery, KEM Hospital.

According to Puri, of the total workload about 1% patients undergo these aesthetic surgeries. “Even Sion and Nair hospital have women coming over to get cosmetic breast surgeries done,” said Puri. “We felt that our students should get more exposure in this particular field.”

The four live surgeries which will be conducted as part of the workshop will include breast augmentation on a middle–aged woman with uneven breasts; a breast reduction surgery on a woman with severe backache and fungal infections due to oversized breasts; a breast re–construction surgery on a cancer patient; and a breast expansion procedure on a young woman with a flat chest.

“Today, breast cancer is increasing at an alarming rate and many patients are young women. These women loose their self–esteem after undergoing mastectomy. Our intention is to boost their confidence through these surgeries,” said Dr Sanjay Oak, dean, KEM Hospital. Oak added that they are trying to spread awareness among the public about how such high–end surgeries can be done in civic–run hospitals too and at subsidised rates.

For example, a woman may have to shell out about Rs1 lakh or more for a breast re–construction surgery in a private medical set–up. The same surgery would cost her about Rs33,000 in a public hospital. “The kind of exposure that post–graduate students in plastic surgery will get is enormous. Especially, because not all of them get hands on experience on such procedures due to fewer patients,” said Dr LD Dhami, consultant plastic surgeon at Nanavati and Hinduja hospitals. Dhami will be one of the doctors demonstrating the surgeries in the workshop.