Gland excision
For true gynecomastia: the firm retroareolar tissue is removed through a minimal incision at the areola’s edge. Once excised, the gland does not grow back.
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Gynecomastia cases
Male chests operated on by Dr. César Padilla at Quirónsalud Málaga Hospital.
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Gynecomastia
Why it happens
Male breast enlargement has two distinct origins — telling them apart is half the diagnosis. True gynecomastia is gland excess: firm tissue behind the areola, usually hormonal, which by definition no diet or exercise removes. Pseudogynecomastia is local fat, typical after weight changes.
Either way the effect is the same: discomfort with fitted clothes, self-consciousness at the beach, and years of push-ups that never fix it. It affects a huge share of men at some point — and is hardly ever talked about.
Techniques
For true gynecomastia: the firm retroareolar tissue is removed through a minimal incision at the areola’s edge. Once excised, the gland does not grow back.
For the fat component: sculpts the pectoral contour and the transitions towards abdomen and armpits.
With moderate skin excess, radiofrequency helps it retract without large incisions.
The end goal is not just removal: it is projecting the pectoral muscle for a flat, masculine, natural torso.
Before surgery
Your consultation starts with a thorough assessment of your anatomy and goals, followed by a photographic study used to plan the procedure and compare your results later on.
Practical points that apply to every surgery: arrive at a stable weight, have your medication reviewed (antiplatelets and anticoagulants are usually paused beforehand, always together with your doctor) and stop smoking well in advance.
Specific here: the first step is the differential diagnosis — gland or fat? When a hormonal origin is suspected, it is studied before operating. And arrive near your stable weight: with significant excess weight, the honest first step is losing it.
The pre-operative tests and the anaesthesia assessment are completed at Quirónsalud Málaga Hospital.
Recovery
One of the best result-to-downtime ratios in male body surgery.
Muscle-soreness feeling in the chest rather than pain, managed with medication. Compression vest from day one.
Back to office work. Bruising, if any, fades.
Physical jobs and progressive light exercise; the vest continues as prescribed.
Normal training as cleared at review — chest work last.
Definitive result: flat torso, athletic contour and the certainty that excised gland does not return.
Scars
Incisions are minimal — a few millimetres — at the areola’s edge or in natural folds, where texture changes conceal them. After a few months of maturing they are very hard to spot.
Surgical honesty
If an active imbalance exists (medication, endocrine), surgery corrects the effect but the cause needs studying: sometimes the first step is not the operating room.
With significant excess weight, weight loss comes first: operating on an unstable weight compromises the result.
Excised gland does not regenerate. But a future hormonal imbalance or major weight gain can add volume through other routes.
No bench press removes gland: it is firm tissue, neither muscle nor fat. If you have tried for years, it was never lack of effort.
Patient information
Every surgery carries risks and this one is no exception. You will go through them in detail during your consultation and in writing in the informed-consent form; this is the honest summary.
Expected — not a complication
Uncommon
When not to operate. With an unstudied active hormonal cause, or with weight in full swing. Surgery comes when the diagnosis is clear.
Hospital
Consultation, surgery and post-operative follow-up in a leading hospital: state-of-the-art operating rooms, ICU and private rooms.
12
Operating rooms
24 h
ER & ICU
100 %
Private rooms
Price
A closed, personal quote after assessment: it varies with whether gland, fat or both need treating, and whether skin retraction is added. It includes the operating room at Quirónsalud Málaga, anaesthesia, aftercare and follow-up visits.
About cheap offers. You will see plenty. Our honest advice: research and choose your surgeon first, and only then compare prices — never the other way round.
FAQS
The examination tells: gland is firm tissue behind the areola; fat is soft and diffuse. The technique — and the result — depend on that diagnosis, so it is the first question we answer.
No — excised gland does not regenerate. Only a new hormonal imbalance or major weight gain could add volume again, through different tissue.
Office work: 3–4 days. Physically demanding jobs: 10–14 days. Training returns progressively from clearance at review.
The anaesthetic protocol is decided at your consultation, with the assessment of the anaesthesia team at Quirónsalud Málaga Hospital as part of the pre-operative workup.
Content reviewed by
Dr. César Padilla
Specialist in Plastic, Aesthetic and Reconstructive Surgery
Member of the Spanish Society of Plastic, Reconstructive and Aesthetic Surgery (SECPRE)
15+ years of practice · Quirónsalud Málaga Hospital
Last content review: August 2026
