What Is A Mastectomy

A mastectomy is surgery to remove a breast. It is performed either to treat or to prevent breast cancer. Only high-risk patients have surgery to prevent cancer.

There are five different types of mastectomy: "simple" or "total" mastectomy, modified radical mastectomy, radical mastectomy, partial mastectomy, and subcutaneous (nipple-sparing) mastectomy:

1. Simple or total mastectomy concentrates on the breast tissue itself and the surgeon removes the entire breast. No muscles are removed from beneath the breast. A simple or total mastectomy is appropriate for women with multiple or large areas of ductal carcinoma in situ (DCIS) and for women seeking prophylactic mastectomies which is breast removal in order to prevent any possibility of breast cancer occurring.

2. Modified radical mastectomy involves the removal of both breast tissue and lymph nodes. The surgeon removes the entire breast and no muscles are removed from beneath the breast. Most people with invasive breast cancer who decide to have mastectomies will receive modified radical mastectomies so that the lymph nodes can be examined. Examining the lymph nodes helps to identify whether cancer cells may have spread beyond the breast.

3. Radical mastectomy is the most extensive type of mastectomy where the surgeon removes the entire breast and the chest wall muscles under the breast. Today, radical mastectomy is recommended only when the breast cancer has spread to the chest muscles under the breast. Although common in the past, radical mastectomy is now rarely performed because in most cases, modified radical mastectomy has proven to be just as effective and less disfiguring.

4. Partial mastectomy Partial is the removal of the cancerous part of the breast tissue and some normal tissue around it. While lumpectomy is technically a form of partial mastectomy, more tissue is removed in partial mastectomy than in lumpectomy.

5. Subcutaneous ("nipple-sparing") mastectomy is when all of the breast tissue is removed, but the nipple is left alone. Subcutaneous mastectomy is performed less often than simple or total mastectomy because more breast tissue is left behind afterwards that could later develop cancer. Some physicians have also reported that breast reconstruction after subcutaneous mastectomy can result in distortion and possibly numbness of the nipple. Because subcutaneous mastectomy is still an area of controversy among some physicians, your doctor may recommend simple or total mastectomy instead.

Which surgery you have depends on the stage of cancer, size of the tumor, size of the breast and whether the lymph nodes are involved. Many women have breast reconstruction to rebuild the breast after a mastectomy.

 

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