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Trueman Customer Story Column

A decision made before summer arrived

Author : Dr. Min-soo KimJuly 23, 2026 at 11:21 AM 18
Truman Customer Story Column

A decision made before summer arrived

In gynecomastia consultations, many men come as the seasons are turning.

Man Walking on Beach 2 K 202607301133

The closer the time of lighter clothing gets, the more a long-postponed concern becomes one that can no longer be postponed. That was true of the patient I want to introduce today. His answers were short and plain, but the feedback carried the clarity of a man who had made up his mind ahead of summer.

 

Side effects and recovery — the worries everyone has

Asked what worried him most before surgery, he named side effects and how quickly he would recover.

Natural worries. How well the surgery goes matters, and so does how naturally you can get back to everyday life afterward. We explain this in consultation without exaggerating or downplaying it. Recovery differs from person to person, so explaining the expected course for each individual's condition in advance and then managing it accordingly is, I believe, the surest way to ease that worry.

 

First impressions come from people

Asked how the clinic felt on his first visit, he wrote that he was met kindly.

Concerns about the chest are hard even to put into words. So the first exchange has to feel comfortable before anything else can be said comfortably. It was one short line, but a welcome answer, because he noticed the very thing we try to maintain.

 

What he remembers about the anesthesia

Asked about the moment from surgery that stayed with him, he answered that the anesthesia went well.

A large part of the fear of surgery is really fear of anesthesia. In his case the anesthesia went smoothly and he got through the surgery without difficulty, but reactions to anesthesia and how it feels can differ from person to person. That is why we take time over the pre-operative assessment and over explaining how anesthesia will proceed.

"Wearing what I want in summer"

When I asked what he most wanted to do after surgery, his answer was: "Wearing what I want in summer."

I think that one line contains his whole reason for deciding on surgery. Something that is nothing at all to other people may have been, for him, a worry that came back every single summer. The wish to spend this summer differently is what brought him into the exam room.

Asked what he would say to men facing the same concern, he wrote this.

"I think the sooner you decide, the better."

That said, it comes strictly from his own experience. Whether surgery is needed, and whether now is the right time, is something to judge after confirming your own condition accurately through an examination. Still, if you are letting another summer slip by in the same loop of deliberation, I would suggest starting not with a decision but with a consultation.

I hope you get to take out the clothes you have wanted to wear this summer.

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Dr. Min-soo Kim
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Dr. Min-soo Kim
Gangnam Branch · Thoracic Surgeon · Master of Medicine
# Trend-Aware Body Design# Patient Communication First# Tailored to Your Needs
Key Background
  • · Board Certified Thoracic Surgeon / M.S. in Medicine
  • · M.D., Pusan National University School of Medicine
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"Body design with a contemporary eye — surgery led by a full understanding of what the patient wants"
"A result is complete when the medical team's skill and the patient's wishes meet. With a trend-aware eye I read precisely the line each patient has in mind, and through careful communication at every stage I bring about the change they are most satisfied with."
  • · Thoracic Surgery Residency, Samsung Medical Center
  • · Thoracic Surgery Fellowship, Samsung Medical Center
  • · Former Professor of Thoracic Surgery, Dongguk University Ilsan Hospital
  • · Member, The Korean Society for Thoracic and Cardiovascular Surgery
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