While the best purveyors of Miami nip and tucks are portrayed with the same celebrity status as their elite clientele, what often is overlooked is critically important reconstructive surgery for less fortunate patients who have lifelong deformities and other physical challenges.

For Marshall Cosmétique Center, the practice is much more than a vanity profile.

Deirdre Marshall, M.D., a board-certified plastic surgeon and one of South Florida’s leading plastic surgeons provides a comprehensive range of cosmetic and reconstructive plastic surgery procedures at her South Miami center. Among her services are reconstructive, body contouring and facial rejuvenation plastic surgeries. 

Her specialty – breast reconstruction post-mastectomy – is particularly satisfying, Dr. Marshall says. Her work has made her the go-to doctor for Miami oncologists referring patients for breast reconstruction after breast cancer surgery. 

“There is a high degree of mental and emotional trauma associated with the surgery, in addition to the physical trauma,” said Dr. Marshall. “I do think women want to be normal and stay looking normal. That’s all we ask for – that we’re healthy and we can carry on with our lives. Breast cancer can be just a bump in the road now.”

Named to South Florida’s “Super Doctors” list in 2009, Dr. Marshall is considered an expert breast reconstruction and pediatric cranial, facial and hand surgeon. Over the years, she has traveled on several overseas surgical missions to Vietnam and various locations in Central and South America to provide treatment for indigent children in poverty-stricken areas.

The need for reconstructive surgery remains profound.

Charitable organizations still perform more than 80 percent of cleft lip and cleft palate surgeries in Vietnam—reflecting the complex and persistent barriers to surgical care in low- to middle-income countries, according to a November study in Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery, the official medical journal of the American Society of Plastic Surgeons.

Financial and structural barriers, such as a lack of trained medical personnel and cultural issues that include family mistrust of modern medical procedures, continue to be obstacles to treatment in many areas of the world.

“Patients in Miami and the U.S. are fortunate. They have great access to life-changing, even life-saving reconstructive services,” said Dr. Marshall. “At Marshall Cosmétique Center, we perform hand surgery, microsurgery, even abdominal reconstruction surgery in addition to breast reconstruction.”

An expert pediatric craniofacial surgeon, Dr. Marshall also performs otoplasty – surgery to correct abnormal ear structure due to misshaped or protruding ears. Ever the children’s advocate, most patients are children aged four to 14. 

A Yale University alumnus, Dr. Marshall completed her medical studies at Stanford School of Medicine in Palo Alto, Calif. She has been bestowed with several academic awards and honors, including the Katherine M. McCormick Foundation Award for Women in Medicine and the Stanford University School of Medicine Research Honors Award.

She opened Marshall Cosmétique, a leading Miami cosmetic and reconstructive surgery center, in 1993. Her practice has been built mainly with cosmetic procedures, including breast augmentation, tummy tucks, face lifts, neck lifts, eyelid surgery and nose surgery – a profitable endeavor that has allowed her to partake in charitable reconstructive surgeries in Asia and the Americas.

Breast cancer clients often cite “the human factor” as a healing component during their post-op procedures with Dr. Marshall.

“I am aware of the toll that tumors, disease and genetic defects have on appearance and normal functioning of the body, and we make it clear to patients that they are in good hands,” said Dr. Marshall.

Facial aging remains a high concern for South Floridians, and is an important part of Dr. Marshall’s growing business. Normally attributed to the natural aging process, lifestyle and heredity, facelifts remain the most common form of facial rejuvenation. Additional minimally invasive procedures such as Botox, Juvederm and Latisse, and skin-rejuvenation products can augment facelifts, which tighten and lift excessive skin.

In addition to serving women, Marshall Cosmétique also offers gynecomastia treatment, or male breast reduction, aimed to help men improve their appearance and self-image. 

“One thing I particularly like about Dr. Marshall is the human factor,” said Xiomara Bencomo, a breast reconstruction patient. “For my first consultation, she sat with me for a long period of time. She had no rush to get out, and she answered all my questions. She will put you at ease. She’ll be there all the way through the good and the bad.”

Dr. Marshall also has made navigating the financial jungle of treatment financing easier. Special financing can be arranged with low monthly payment options, no up-front costs and no-prepayment penalties. 

“Improving self-image is at the core of what we do,” said Dr. Marshall. “In breast reconstruction, some things never change; there are tried and true techniques. We are always trying to improve the patient’s experience and improve our results, our techniques and the materials we use to make things safer and better. When you get through all trees and all the tunnels, in the end we can get a nice, fairly natural result.” 

“I feel that if I made it through that, I can really go through anything,” said Mencomo. “I feel like now I have a strength I didn’t have before.”