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Wednesday, October 6, 2010
Hollywood Stars Plastic Surgery
Oprah.com : Entering the Cancer War Zone
Since her diagnosis in October 2009, Griffin has been candidly blogging about her fight with cancer. What started as a way to keep family and friends updated has turned into a support system for the people across the country who read it. "I don't recommend secrecy," she says. "Tell your friends, tell your children, tell the school right away. Children can handle this information; they take their cue from you."
In her first entry, she blogs about the visualization exercise she uses to mentally fight the war within: "I'm the Commander in Chief. Al Qaeda cells have taken over parts of my body, and I have signed the Execute Order and sent in the Navy Seals with a shoot to kill order."
To describe cancer as a war zone is a fitting analogy; triple negative is aggressive and fast-acting. "It's the kind of cancer that grows in between mammograms," Griffin says. In general, this type of breast cancer has one of the worst survival rates.
However, a diagnosis of triple negative is not hopeless—Griffin was treated with 17 rounds of chemotherapy and an experimental drug called carboplatin, which is normally used to treat colon cancer. She was given a complete pathological response—meaning she is now cancer-free.
Fighting Back with Diet and Exercise
Griffin wanted her immune system to be as strong as possible so that she would get the maximum benefit from chemotherapy. "My plan of attack was to control everything that was going into my body," she says. "I made sure I had a very detoxed, clean diet." Some of the nutritional changes Griffin made included removing processed foods from her diet, eating cancer-fighting foods like broccoli and cabbage and cutting out alcohol completely.
Read about the cancer-fighting foods Griffin swears by.
Turning a new leaf and opting for a healthy lifestyle isn't just for cancer patients—Griffin says it's vital for everyone. "We all have cancerous cells in us," she says. "It's a question of whether they go haywire or not. The question is whether your immune system can sweep them away or whether you have a broken gene that then allows something to click. If your system gets overwhelmed with toxic food, environmental factors or stress—that's what allows cancer to grow."
Griffin's Body Armor: Her Lipstick and Wig
A chemotherapy patient's hair is expected to start falling out by Day 17 of treatment. That day never came for Griffin because she chose to take matters into her own hands. "A few girlfriends and my 7-year-old daughter and I went to my favorite hairstylist at the Four Seasons, and he shaved my head," she says. "It was a little bit emotional, but it was also very empowering. I recommend that to all women—shave your head before the hair starts falling out, because it's very debilitating. You don't want to be a victim of this hair coming out and start to look sickly. People tell me 'You didn't look sick through this entire process.' Well, I certainly did while I was in my bathroom in the morning, but I took a little extra time. If I took the time to put on a little lipstick and draw in my eyebrows, I could tell the difference."
When she walked around town without any makeup on, Griffin says people's eyes would dart away. "I could tell they felt so sorry for me," she says. "And that is not the way you want to feel when you're going through this process. You want to feel large and in charge. You want to feel like G.I. Jane. You want to shave your head, and you want to learn how to rock a wig."
One of Griffin's tips: Don't treat a wig as a sign of sickness. "I can tell you one thing: Nobody in Hollywood is wearing their own hair," she says. Griffin made an event out of wig shopping with her twin daughters and dubbed one of her long, brown wigs "The Miley Cyrus." A short, edgy red wig with blonde streaks became Griffin's Josie and the Pussycats look. "It was funky," she says. "I had never been a redhead before, and people loved that wig."
Griffin's breasts were reconstructed immediately following her mastectomy—and her reaction was far different from what she expected. "When you look down and you see these great, voluptuous mounds, it's not as psychologically debilitating as it was for women 10 years ago who were getting the radical mastectomies." And the best part for Griffin? "My breasts are so perky, they say I never have to wear a bra again," she says. "There's a silver lining to all of this."
Although Griffin is cancer-free, the fight isn't over yet and she is currently undergoing six weeks of radiation therapy. "Right now, I don't have any sign of cancer, but I still need the radiation because these cancers are so tricky and they return and they hide," she says. "I feel a little bruised after a long fight this year, but I'm resetting my sights on this last six weeks. It really is mind over matter."
For women in a similar situation, Griffin's biggest piece of advice after being diagnosed is to do your research. "Do not trust one doctor," she says. "I love my doctors, and my team of doctors saved my life—but I double-checked. I researched things myself. I got a PhD in cancer by the end of this."
For anyone not in her situation, Griffin says to schedule a mammogram now if you haven't already done so this year—and to demand that doctors find a better way to screen for breast cancer while women are pregnant and nursing. Griffin began getting mammograms at age 30, but her tumors grew while she was nursing and remained undetected until one was the size of an orange. "I get emails from other women who are the same age as me, with small children, who were diagnosed," she says."We have to find a way to screen."
Oprah: After Breast Cancer
Dr. Oz talks with breast cancer survivors about moving on after breast cancer. Plus, Joachim "Jolly" Rechenberg, chairman of American Breast Care, talks about specialty bras, breast forms and breast prosthetics available to survivors. Then, Dr. Oz talks with actress Ann Jillian about her work in breast cancer awareness, beginning in the 1980s and continuing today.
Experts and survivors talk with Dr. Oz about helping women cope after breast cancer...
After Breast Cancer
When cancer strikes and doctors are required to remove a body part to cure the illness, it's not uncommon for patients to feel as if they have a defect. When a woman has a mastectomy and loses one or both breasts, feeling whole again can be especially difficult, Dr. Oz says.
"At the end of the day, one of the first questions you ask if you have been cured of your breast cancer is, 'Now what do I do? How do I look normal again? How do I keep the sexuality that is part of our existence intact?'"
Eighteen years ago, Patrice was diagnosed with breast cancer and had to have one breast removed during surgery. While surviving the cancer was her ultimate goal, living life with one breast was also a concern. "We live in a very breast-conscious society, and so losing a breast is very devastating," she says.
Undergoing another surgery for breast reconstruction was not something Patrice pursued because she was afraid the new breast would become a problem over time. "Good old Mother Nature is always pulling down on the side of the remaining breast and doesn't on the reconstructed side," Patrice says. "So, many times, these women end up wearing a [breast] prosthesis after the reconstruction."
The prosthesis available 18 years ago were heavy, uncomfortable and not wearable for everyday use, Patrice says. Today, breast prosthesis technology has improved dramatically and Patrice says companies like American Breast Care are to thank.
As chairman of American Breast Care, Joachim "Jolly" Rechenberg oversees a company that offers women an alternative to reconstructive surgery with its lightweight external breast prosthesis and specialized bras. The company began in the mid-1970s, when Jolly and his brother sought a way to improve existing breast forms, which at the time were being made with rice and beads. "The products were just terrible, so we said we have to find a better way to do this," he says.
In 1975, Jolly says his brother, who became a plastics engineer, designed and patented a silicone breast form for external use. From there the pair started American Breast Care and today, the company sells more than 200 different kinds of sizes and styles depending on the type of surgery and shape, softness and fullness of the breast.
Linda, a nurse and breast cancer survivor, is a certified bra fitter with American Breast Care. Her company, U.P. Bras That Fit, sells American Breast Care products to breast cancer survivors all over the country.
Linda says she is not only selling products but educating breast cancer survivors and helping them cope with the aftermath of a mastectomy. "Being a survivor makes you want to advocate, to help other women so they don't have to go through what you did," she says.
In 1988, actress Ann Jillian shared her struggle with breast cancer with millions of people by starring in a made-for-TV movie about her ordeal. Ann says her message of survival and prevention is still reaching many today as she dedicates herself to sharing her story and her mission to end breast cancer. "There is life at the end of the tunnel, there can be. The prerequisite is early detection and swift medical action," she says.
Click HERE for Article:
Oprah: Obsessed with Perfection-Breast Reduction
Cheryl, a mother of two, admits she is addicted to liposuction—and what was once a quick fix has now turned into an obsession. Cheryl's had a breast reduction, liposuction on her lower abdomen, "love handles" in the back, as well as a tummy tuck and tightening of her lower stomach muscles. Cheryl's obsession is taking a toll on the entire family, especially her husband Brad. The plastic surgery bills have put the family in serious debt, and Brad is working three jobs to work on paying off Cheryl's plastic surgery tab. Now, Cheryl wants liposuction on her legs. If she goes through with it, Brad has threatened divorce.
Cheryl says, "He's tired of it all. We can't afford it. I mean, we refinanced our house to do this. So I need to stop."
Click HERE for entire article:
The Anatomy of a Happy Patient - Part 1
Years ago, when the world was full of American built cars, the bottoms of pants resembled church bells, and disco was king, plastic surgery patients were routinely evaluated by a psychiatrist to make sure that they were in a good and healthy frame of mind before proceeding with surgery. Back then, plastic surgery was so very taboo. It would be done in back-office operating rooms and recovery required seclusion in virtual home confinement. Alias names would be used for surgery scheduling, and people would hide themselves away from the limelight for weeks at a time.
Fast forward thirty years, in the age of the internet and where information travels at the speed of discretion, we have made some amazing progress in social acceptance of plastic surgery. Today, especially in Orange County, California, plastic surgery is as common as the good weather. But still, on a regular basis, I will encounter patients who readily start our conversation with phrases such as "I don't mean to be vain but..." Or, another discussion may start out with words like "I never imagined that I would want to have plastic surgery..." This tells me that despite all of the progress that has been made with regard to our social acceptance of plastic surgery, there is something that seems to be inherent in people that says plastic surgery is still taboo. The question is why?
The desire for plastic surgery begins with our universal aspiration to be the very best person we all feel that we should aspire to. Inherently, it is no different than the desire to better ourselves by exercise, study, or religion. However, plastic surgery centers around our appearance. It is also the most aggressive and perhaps most radical way that we can change the way we look at ourselves and how others perceive us. While the decision to undergo the knife to change our appearance stems from the same inherent desire that motivates us to apply makeup, get a new hairdo, or wear nice clothes, plastic surgery is different in so many aspects. We will explore these differences in our next post.
Fast forward thirty years, in the age of the internet and where information travels at the speed of discretion, we have made some amazing progress in social acceptance of plastic surgery. Today, especially in Orange County, California, plastic surgery is as common as the good weather. But still, on a regular basis, I will encounter patients who readily start our conversation with phrases such as "I don't mean to be vain but..." Or, another discussion may start out with words like "I never imagined that I would want to have plastic surgery..." This tells me that despite all of the progress that has been made with regard to our social acceptance of plastic surgery, there is something that seems to be inherent in people that says plastic surgery is still taboo. The question is why?
The desire for plastic surgery begins with our universal aspiration to be the very best person we all feel that we should aspire to. Inherently, it is no different than the desire to better ourselves by exercise, study, or religion. However, plastic surgery centers around our appearance. It is also the most aggressive and perhaps most radical way that we can change the way we look at ourselves and how others perceive us. While the decision to undergo the knife to change our appearance stems from the same inherent desire that motivates us to apply makeup, get a new hairdo, or wear nice clothes, plastic surgery is different in so many aspects. We will explore these differences in our next post.
Plastic Surgery for Christmas
Many people around me are surprised when I tell them that my busiest time of the year is during holidays such as Thanksgiving and Christmas. In fact, whenever there is a couple of days off for people such as long holiday weekends, my schedule starts to get busy. The key here is that patients want to recover those extra days without taking time off of work and they often combine a few days of vacation time with the extra holiday days-off to complete their recovery.
Many of you may actually also be surprised that you can recover from surgeries such as breast augmentation (breast implant surgery) in a matter of a few days. While people take different amounts of time to recover from surgery, I have had patients have breast augmentation surgery on a Friday and go back to work on a Sunday. I operate at a highly acclaimed surgery center in Newport Beach, the Newport Beach Surgery Center with board-certified anesthesiologist. They have the anesthesia down to a fine art so that patients are not feeling very groggy afterwards and are up and ready to go home within about an hour after surgery.
Breast augmenation surgery takes about an 1 1/2 hour to do. The recovery time is variable. For silicone implants, the cost runs around $6500. For salines, the cost is $5800. I also have a price-matching guarantee so that you can bring in quotes from other reputable board-certified plastic surgeons and we will do our best to match it.
Many of you may actually also be surprised that you can recover from surgeries such as breast augmentation (breast implant surgery) in a matter of a few days. While people take different amounts of time to recover from surgery, I have had patients have breast augmentation surgery on a Friday and go back to work on a Sunday. I operate at a highly acclaimed surgery center in Newport Beach, the Newport Beach Surgery Center with board-certified anesthesiologist. They have the anesthesia down to a fine art so that patients are not feeling very groggy afterwards and are up and ready to go home within about an hour after surgery.
Breast augmenation surgery takes about an 1 1/2 hour to do. The recovery time is variable. For silicone implants, the cost runs around $6500. For salines, the cost is $5800. I also have a price-matching guarantee so that you can bring in quotes from other reputable board-certified plastic surgeons and we will do our best to match it.
Orange County Plastic Surgeon's take on Mommy Makeovers
I was perusing through some of the many parenting magazines in my son’s pediatrician’s office the other day, and I happened to notice the numerous ads for creams and herbal remedies that promise to make a mom’s tummy flatter and breasts fuller. With dazzling photos of women with toned abs and fuller breasts, these ads seem to promise the impossible. But, these tantalizing ads speak to the desire of millions of moms out there who would love to have their body back to the way it looked before they had children.
As a plastic surgeon that specializes in breast and body contouring surgery and as a husband of a mom of three children, I have come to appreciate how having one or more children can change a woman’s body. The effects of nursing children and the fluctuation in breast size during and after pregnancy can cause lasting changes in the shape and volume of a woman’s breasts. The weight gain and skin stretching associated with one or more pregnancies can also have permanent effects on the appearance of the abdomen. Fat deposits in the hips and thighs, stretch marks in the lower abdomen, and loosening of the abdominal muscles characterize the typical effects of pregnancy on a woman’s body. Every woman I have come across who is unhappy about her appearance after pregnancy has tried very hard to lose weight, tone up, and exercise hoping to improve her appearance. But the changes that are made as the result of pregnancy are often structural. And these structural changes will not be repaired by weight loss alone or any amount of exercise. For example, the rectus abdominis muscles (the 6-pack muscles) which are typically seen so clear cut in body builders are permanently loosened and stretched out as the result of pregnancies. The only method of definitively repairing this laxity of these muscles is to use internal sutures as part of a tummy tuck procedure.
Plastic surgery of the breasts and tummy is the most common procedure I do as a plastic surgeon. Known as the “mommy makeover”, such a procedure to reshape and firm up the breasts and tummy creates dramatic changes. The changes typically seen are not subtle. It is truly dramatic and can be life changing.
In moms who have had multiple pregnancies and have nursed children, the breasts typically sag due to the loss of volume. This loss of volume is typically addressed by the use of breast implants. Most women who come in to see me do not want to appear “top-heavy” or out of proportion to the rest of their figure. They simply want to fill out their dress size and look flattering in a bathing suit. The two types of implants that are used are saline and silicone. Silicone implants typically feel more natural than saline implants, and the new cohesive gel implants that are used today are the latest generation of silicone implants which are semi-solid in their content and have been approved for general public use by the FDA.
Depending on the amount of sagginess to the breasts, an implant may or may not be enough to reshape the breasts. Often, a breast lift is performed together with the placement of breast implants to reshape the breasts to a more youthful appearance. Breast augmentation combined with a breast lift typically takes about 2-3 hours in surgery and is performed under general anesthesia. It can be performed as an outpatient procedure.
Breast surgery is often combined with a tummy tuck and liposuction of the love handle area as well as the thighs as part of a complete mommy makeover.
A tummy tuck is performed thru an incision in the lower abdominal region just above the hair bearing area of the pubic area. Typically, all of the loose skin, fat, and stretch marks below the level of the belly button are removed in a tummy tuck and the skin over the belly button is typically stretched to resurface the entire abdomen for a much more tight and youthful appearance. The belly button is preserved and relocated in a new place on the abdomen. In addition, loose abdominal muscles are tightened with internal sutures which flatten the abdomen and narrow the waistline.
The finishing touches of a mommy makeover are usually done with liposculpture. Suctioning away those stubborn areas of fat in the love handle areas and the thighs create a slimmer appearance to the torso and the thighs for a whole new contour of the body.
The complete mommy makeover typically takes about 5 hours of surgery and an overnight stay in recovery is usually recommended.
Call today for your complementary consultation with Dr. Richard Lee, Newport Beach and Orange County Mommy Makeover Plastic Surgeon at (949) 548-9312.
As a plastic surgeon that specializes in breast and body contouring surgery and as a husband of a mom of three children, I have come to appreciate how having one or more children can change a woman’s body. The effects of nursing children and the fluctuation in breast size during and after pregnancy can cause lasting changes in the shape and volume of a woman’s breasts. The weight gain and skin stretching associated with one or more pregnancies can also have permanent effects on the appearance of the abdomen. Fat deposits in the hips and thighs, stretch marks in the lower abdomen, and loosening of the abdominal muscles characterize the typical effects of pregnancy on a woman’s body. Every woman I have come across who is unhappy about her appearance after pregnancy has tried very hard to lose weight, tone up, and exercise hoping to improve her appearance. But the changes that are made as the result of pregnancy are often structural. And these structural changes will not be repaired by weight loss alone or any amount of exercise. For example, the rectus abdominis muscles (the 6-pack muscles) which are typically seen so clear cut in body builders are permanently loosened and stretched out as the result of pregnancies. The only method of definitively repairing this laxity of these muscles is to use internal sutures as part of a tummy tuck procedure.
Plastic surgery of the breasts and tummy is the most common procedure I do as a plastic surgeon. Known as the “mommy makeover”, such a procedure to reshape and firm up the breasts and tummy creates dramatic changes. The changes typically seen are not subtle. It is truly dramatic and can be life changing.
In moms who have had multiple pregnancies and have nursed children, the breasts typically sag due to the loss of volume. This loss of volume is typically addressed by the use of breast implants. Most women who come in to see me do not want to appear “top-heavy” or out of proportion to the rest of their figure. They simply want to fill out their dress size and look flattering in a bathing suit. The two types of implants that are used are saline and silicone. Silicone implants typically feel more natural than saline implants, and the new cohesive gel implants that are used today are the latest generation of silicone implants which are semi-solid in their content and have been approved for general public use by the FDA.
Depending on the amount of sagginess to the breasts, an implant may or may not be enough to reshape the breasts. Often, a breast lift is performed together with the placement of breast implants to reshape the breasts to a more youthful appearance. Breast augmentation combined with a breast lift typically takes about 2-3 hours in surgery and is performed under general anesthesia. It can be performed as an outpatient procedure.
Breast surgery is often combined with a tummy tuck and liposuction of the love handle area as well as the thighs as part of a complete mommy makeover.
A tummy tuck is performed thru an incision in the lower abdominal region just above the hair bearing area of the pubic area. Typically, all of the loose skin, fat, and stretch marks below the level of the belly button are removed in a tummy tuck and the skin over the belly button is typically stretched to resurface the entire abdomen for a much more tight and youthful appearance. The belly button is preserved and relocated in a new place on the abdomen. In addition, loose abdominal muscles are tightened with internal sutures which flatten the abdomen and narrow the waistline.
The finishing touches of a mommy makeover are usually done with liposculpture. Suctioning away those stubborn areas of fat in the love handle areas and the thighs create a slimmer appearance to the torso and the thighs for a whole new contour of the body.
The complete mommy makeover typically takes about 5 hours of surgery and an overnight stay in recovery is usually recommended.
Call today for your complementary consultation with Dr. Richard Lee, Newport Beach and Orange County Mommy Makeover Plastic Surgeon at (949) 548-9312.
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