Teen breast reduction surgery in Portland, OR area

February 23, 2023 10:45 AM

I'm looking for a surgeon who might be willing to do a breast reduction on a young teen and takes insurance. Also, if you have experience finding such a physician, and getting it covered for a person under 18, but you live in another area, I'd like to hear that, too.

Anonymous because this is medical information about my minor child. She is more than 3 years beyond menarche and her breast size seems stable so far at 32G. Our insurance company does cover breast reduction in teens if certain criteria are met. The problem has been finding someone who will work on a patient under age 18. So far the physicians we have seen seem to want to scare her into not having the surgery, citing lifelong severe pain caused by the surgery, inability to breastfeed, etc. Our own reading of medical literature suggests that these risks exist but are not as common as the doctors are saying.

Do you have experience with breast reduction under age 18? Was it covered? And, importantly, can you suggest a surgeon in the Portland or Salem, OR general areas?

Thanks in advance!

posted by anonymous to Health & Fitness (7 answers total)

Mod note: One comment removed. This is a sensitive topic, so please help the OP with recommendations to the stated problem and avoid counter arguments, thanks!
posted by Brandon Blatcher (staff) at 11:38 AM on February 23, 2023 [18 favorites]

Boston Children’s Hospital has an Adolescent Breast Center and an FAQ on the benefits of breast reduction surgery for teenagers. I’ve received care for my kids at BCH for many years, and I’ve always been impressed with the care they provide.

I realize that Boston is very far away, but maybe they could refer you to a local surgeon?
posted by Winnie the Proust at 12:51 PM on February 23, 2023 [3 favorites]

This is a shot in the dark, but I wonder if places that do gender-affirming surgery for teens and young adults might be more open to this. I'm thinking of OHSU in particular. I don't know if you've been talking to doctors who are plastic surgeons and work mostly with adults, but perhaps doctors and practices that work with transgender folks might have a more-opened circuit?
posted by bluedaisy at 1:04 PM on February 23, 2023 [5 favorites]

(Missed the edit window, but meant to say more open-minded circuit or community of practice.)
posted by bluedaisy at 1:13 PM on February 23, 2023

If you haven’t already, I would go to a local children’s hospital. You might try their general or plastic surgery clinics to start- Doernbecher is affiliated with OHSU.
posted by MadamM at 2:13 PM on February 23, 2023

To follow up on bluedaisy’s suggestion, Dr. Blair Peters (he/they) specializes in gender affirming surgery at OHSU. He has spoken and posted about providing care to adolescents and young adults. He might be a good option to check out.
posted by bluloo at 2:39 PM on February 23, 2023 [2 favorites]

This is a slightly different circumstance, but I once had a consult a few years ago with Dr. Jens Berli, over at OHSU, for my Top Surgery. While I ultimately didn't have my surgery done with him, he was kind, patient, knowledgeable, and I was happy with the after result pictures of other patients who had breast surgery done by him.

If he can't do the surgery himself, he may be able to refer you to a collegue of his who will hopefully be able to help.
posted by spinifex23 at 4:02 PM on February 23, 2023 [1 favorite]