Dr Rozina Ali is an internationally recognised consultant reconstructive and aesthetic plastic surgeon with almost 30 years of experience and a long-standing reputation as a pioneer in regenerative medicine.
Trained in advanced fat transfer, stem-cell–based therapies and biological tissue restoration, she has spent nearly two decades refining techniques that harness the body’s own living tissues to restore volume, repair damage and improve skin quality. Known for her thoughtful, patient-centred approach, Dr Ali views fat transfer not simply as a cosmetic procedure but as a powerful regenerative tool, integrating science, anatomy and artistry to deliver natural, long-lasting results.
Fat transfer is one of the most misunderstood yet powerful tools in modern aesthetic and reconstructive surgery. Often thought of simply as a way to add volume, it is, in reality, a sophisticated regenerative procedure that allows you to recycle your own excess tissue to restore shape, structure and skin quality.
I have worked with fat for over two decades and regard it as a tissue transfer procedure in its own right. Here are ten things many people don’t realise about this remarkable procedure.
- Fat is not filler, it is living tissue
Unlike synthetic fillers, fat is alive. When transferred correctly, it integrates with your tissues, establishes a blood supply and becomes part of you.
- Fat is the richest sources of adult mesenchymal stem cells
Fat contains the highest concentration of regenerative cells. These can be used to improve skin quality, scar tissue, wound healing, hair regeneration and tissue pliability, as well as volume enhancement.
- Fat transfer is both aesthetic and regenerative
We use it not only to add volume, but to improve damaged, ageing or fragile tissues, including sun-damaged skin, scars and post-radiotherapy areas.
- It can regenerate skin, improve scars and rejuvenate the scalp
The regenerative properties of fat and stem cells extend beyond the face and body. When applied to the scalp, this biologically rich tissue can improve blood flow, tissue health and the follicular environment, supporting hair density and healthier hair growth in selected patients.
- It can be used almost anywhere
Face, breasts, hands, décolletage, hips and body contours can all benefit from the regenerative capacity of fat transfer when performed appropriately.
- Breast fat transfer creates soft, natural results
Fat moves, feels and ages like natural post-menopausal breast tissue. It can be used alone for modest enhancement or combined with implants to give a more natural shape, symmetry and softness.
- Stem-cell–rich fat can be separated for pure regeneration
By concentrating the stromal vascular fraction (SVF), we can create a liquid stem-cell solution with minimal volume, ideal for facelifts, scars and scalp rejuvenation.
- Fat transfer improves skin quality
Patients often notice better elasticity, luminosity and texture because the regenerative component enhances the overlying crepey skin.
- Serial Fat transfer is a thing.
There is a limitation to how much fat can be transferred in any one procedure. Limitations are due to to the blood supply, so in order to ensure complication free, successful soft and natural results serial fat transfer is an excellent option . This also allows results to evolve gradually and reliably.
- Fat can be used immediately or frozen and stored
We can safely preserve harvested fat for future use, offering ongoing long-term regenerative and reconstructive options from a single surgical procedure.
For me, Fat transfer is about working with Nature, with biology, not against it. As i always say, fat is the elixir of youth, not only because it creates dramatic fullness and firmness but because it restores what time, illness or gravity have erodes away and it does so naturally.
When performed with consideration and care, fat transfer allows you to look like a healthier, more balanced version of yourself. I believe that to be the most successful , most powerful outcome of all.
