mastectomy

noun

mas·​tec·​to·​my ma-ˈstek-tə-mē 

plural mastectomies

: surgical removal of all or part of the breast and sometimes associated lymph nodes and muscles

Did you know?

Breast cancer is the most common cancer among American women. Early cases can often be treated with drugs or with a small operation called a lumpectomy (because it removes a lump). Though a "simple mastectomy" is larger than a lumpectomy, it allows the breast to be reconstructed, using artificial implants or tissue from elsewhere on the body. But "radical mastectomy", which is required when the cancer is at an advanced stage, takes much of the chest muscle and makes reconstruction impossible.

Examples of mastectomy in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

This included a lumpectomy to remove the tumor, egg preservation, a double mastectomy with reconstruction, 25 rounds of radiation, and long-term hormone suppressant medication. —Lydia Patrick, MSNBC Newsweek, 6 May 2025

For instance, the first radical mastectomy to treat breast cancer was performed in 1882. —Jacqueline Howard, CNN Money, 5 May 2025

Through a nine-hour mastectomy with reconstructive surgery that carved through fear and tissue. —Nina E. Cerfolio, Los Angeles Times, 25 Apr. 2025

In a Harper's Bazaar cover story published on Thursday, April 24, the supermodel, 59, spoke about the several health struggles she's faced over the past decade, including surgeries like a double mastectomy, the removal of a lump from her chest, keloids and her cosmetic CoolSculpting procedure. —Charlotte Phillipp, People.com, 24 Apr. 2025

Word History

Etymology

Greek mastos breast + English -ectomy

First Known Use

circa 1923, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for mastectomy

• colectomy
• cystectomy
• gastrectomy
• lobectomy
• nephrectomy
• splenectomy
• thymectomy
• vasectomy
• vitrectomy
• adrenalectomy
• cholecystectomy
• endarterectomy

Medical Definition

mastectomy

noun

mas·​tec·​to·​my ma-ˈstek-tə-mē 

plural mastectomies

: surgical removal of all or part of the breast and sometimes associated lymph nodes and muscles see modified radical mastectomy, partial mastectomy, radical mastectomy, simple mastectomy