Exclusive | Meet the men getting breast reductions, the most popular plastic surgery among US males

Brian Lewis Gonzalez spent most of his life trying not to be seen.

Growing up in Brooklyn, he kept to himself, slouching and layering to disguise the excess breast tissue that made him the target of schoolyard taunts. 

“There were summers that I would wear two shirts just to feel comfortable enough to go outside, even if it was 100 degrees,” Gonzalez, now 44, told The Post. “And that was even when I wasn’t that heavy.”

In his early 20s, a devastating breakup led him to put on weight, pushing him up to 300 pounds and further intensifying his deepest insecurity.

“The additional weight made it much worse. It looked very much like a pair of women’s breasts,” he said. “It was tough to socialize. It was tough to do anything.”

But even after he shed over 100 pounds his chest still sagged — a stubborn reminder of the gynecomastia he’d battled since puberty.

Gonzalez, a porter in a residential building, had long dreamed of a permanent solution: a male breast reduction. In 2021, he finally made it happen, taking out loans and paying $10,000 to surgically remove the excess fat, glandular tissue and skin caused by his condition.

“It changed my life,” he said. “I had to get used to walking with my chest out and having confidence. Before, it felt like I was carrying around a big bag of rocks — that’s what my gynecomastia was.”

The male makeover

Gonzalez is far from alone. A growing number of men are seeking surgical treatment for gynecomastia, which is estimated to affect at least half of all men at some point in their lives — though in many cases, it occurs during puberty and resolves on its own.

“Since 2020, I’ve definitely seen a steep increase in men doing consultations and going forward with gynecomastia surgery,” Dr. Claudia Kim, chief medical officer and lead cosmetic surgeon at New Look New Life in Manhattan, told The Post.

The procedure is now the most popular plastic surgery among US men, according to the American Society of Plastic Surgeons. The group reported its doctors performed 26,430 male breast reductions in 2024, up from 20,955 done in 2019. 

“I would go into the fitting room and get so emotional and frustrated because no matter what I wore, they were still so prominent.”

Kelbin Ramirez

Kim, who performed Gonzalez’s operation, credits the rise in part to social media, where men are increasingly opening up about their struggles with gynecomastia — and sharing their solutions.

“There are certain kinds of pain that are worth experiencing, and [surgery] is one of them,” Gonzalez said. “When you have this condition, you’re willing to go through anything and everything to overcome it.”

The mental toll of “man boobs”

Kelbin Ramirez knows this firsthand. The 32-year-old radio personality first noticed he had excess breast tissue around the onset of puberty, a common phase for men to develop gynecomastia amid hormonal fluctuations.

“There can be an imbalance of the hormone levels where it actually stimulates the male chest to form more glandular tissue,” Kim explained. “That’s the most common cause.”

The condition can also be triggered by certain medications, drugs like marijuana and alcohol, obesity and other medical conditions.

As he began to sprout what he called “man boobs,” Ramirez was also wrestling with his sexuality, a complicated period that leveled his self-esteem.

At the mall, he recalled, “I would go into the fitting room and get so emotional and frustrated because no matter what I wore, they were still so prominent.”

Growing up in South Florida, he avoided taking his shirt off at the beach or a pool party, keeping his jacket on even in the summer to conceal his chest.

He explored surgical options in high school, but the steep price tag — often not covered by insurance — left him grappling with the insecurity into adulthood.

“I did try to embrace the whole body positivity movement,” he said. “I tried to wear stuff that I really liked … but at the end of the day, under the clothes, they were always there. And I always felt it.”

“I honestly can’t remember what it’s like to have a masculine-presenting chest.”

DeShawn Pennix

Despite radiating courage on air, Ramirez was a shrinking violet in his day-to-day life, avoiding strangers and struggling to find community after moving to Charlotte, NC.

It wasn’t until he was 30 that he was able to pay out of pocket for surgery.

How gynecomastia surgery works

Doctors approach the operation based on the type and severity of the condition. If it’s mainly caused by excess fat deposits, often called pseudo-gynecomastia, they typically use liposuction.

But if it involves an overgrowth of firm, glandular breast tissue beneath the nipple — as is often the case — doctors generally need to make a cut, usually around the areola, to remove the mass.

Kim said many men have both glandular and fatty tissue, meaning both liposuction and excision are needed.

Ramirez woke from his excision woozy. Drainage tubes sprouted from his chest, where they remained for a week to collect and remove excess fluid.

“Reaching for things was uncomfortable, but nothing was unbearable,” he said. He was back to work after about eight days of rest.

The impact was almost immediate. Now comfortable at the gym, Ramirez started working out and learning about fitness, transforming his physical and mental health.

“I never really understood confidence until this year post-surgery,” he said. “Now I wear whatever I want. I’m not crying in fitting rooms anymore. I go up to people and introduce myself. It has completely changed everything.”

A weighty issue

While gynecomastia can worsen with weight gain, slimming down isn’t necessarily the solution. 

If the issue is purely fat deposits, men who gain weight may see their chest enlarge and almost feminize — but if they lose weight, it’ll typically go away. 

However, for glandular tissue overgrowth, weight loss won’t eliminate the problem.

“It can get smaller if you lean out because you’re decreasing the fat in your chest, but it won’t completely go away because the glands are unaffected by your body fat percentage,” Kim said.  

DeShawn Pennix, 33, assumed the enlarged breast tissue he developed in adolescence was a result of being overweight.

Now a social worker from the DC area, Pennix eventually grew to be more than 350 pounds, with the weight largely concentrated in his upper body.

“I honestly can’t remember what it’s like to have a masculine-presenting chest,” he said. 

He lost more than 120 pounds through lifestyle changes and a GLP-1 medication. And yet, “the gynecomastia was still there.” 

Last month, despite initial delays due to shame and stigma, Pennix opted to go under the knife for the latest step in his physical transformation.

The comprehensive procedure — which involved liposuction, skin removal and excision — cost him $10,208 out of pocket.

“It was absolutely worth it,” Pennix said, noting that the pain level has been bearable. “I’m pleased with what I see right now, I still have a long ways to go in terms of healing.”

After their surgeries, Gonzalez, Ramirez and Pennix all shared a similar sentiment: Your body is yours. If you need to make a change to feel good in it, do it, but make sure it’s for the right reasons. 

“Don’t be afraid to be yourself, regardless of what imperfections you may have,” Gonzalez said. “There’s more to life than just what other people think.”

“If you do the surgery, do it for you,” he continued. “At the end of the day, it’s all about how you feel about yourself.”