mastectomy

mastectomy
/ma stek"teuh mee/, n., pl. mastectomies. Surg.
the operation of removing all or part of the breast or mamma. Also called mammectomy.
[1920-25; MAST- + -ECTOMY]

* * *

Surgical removal of a breast, usually because of breast cancer.

If the cancer has spread, radical mastectomy may remove surrounding tissue and/or nearby structures, including chest muscles and lymph nodes. Modified radical mastectomy leaves at least the main chest muscle, has an equally high survival rate, and makes reconstruction easier. Simple mastectomy is removal of the breast only. Lumpectomy is removal of the tumour only.

* * *

▪ medical procedure
      surgical removal of a breast (breast cancer), usually to remove a malignancy but also performed in the treatment of other conditions (e.g., cystic breast disease) and for other medical reasons. Mastectomy is most effective when the cancerous tumour is discovered at an early stage and the malignant cells are localized. In order to best ensure the removal of all cancerous tissue, however, a margin of tissue surrounding a tumour and, sometimes, other nearby structures are also removed. Thus, there are several types of mastectomy, the selection of procedure depending on the location and extent of the disease (determined by X ray, thermography, and other diagnostic techniques) and the nature of the cancerous cells (determined by biopsy).

      The procedure known as the standard radical mastectomy consists of the removal of the entire breast, the supporting pectoral muscles, and the axillary lymph nodes. A supraradical mastectomy is a standard radical mastectomy plus the removal of the internal mammary and supraclavicular nodes. An extended radical mastectomy is the standard radical mastectomy plus the removal of the internal mammary nodes. In the modified radical mastectomy, the procedure involves removal of the breast but preservation of the pectoralis major muscle. The extent of preservation of the pectoralis minor and axillary nodes varies.

      In the 1970s and '80s there was increasing clinical evidence that the standard radical mastectomy differed little from the modified radical mastectomy in terms of morbidity, mortality, and survival rates. For this reason, the modified procedure came to be preferred in many cases. It also offered cosmetic and functional advantages.

      Other mastectomy methods include simple mastectomy, or the removal of only the breast; simple mastectomy with axillary lymph node dissection; and local incision, sometimes called “lumpectomy,” in which only the tumour is removed.

* * *


Universalium. 2010.

Игры ⚽ Поможем написать курсовую

Look at other dictionaries:

  • Mastectomy — Intervention Mastectomy patient ICD 9 CM 85.4 …   Wikipedia

  • mastectomy — surgical removal of a breast, 1909, from Gk. mastos woman s breast (see MASTO (Cf. masto )) + ECTOMY (Cf. ectomy) …   Etymology dictionary

  • mastectomy — ► NOUN (pl. mastectomies) ▪ a surgical operation to remove a breast. ORIGIN from Greek mastos breast …   English terms dictionary

  • mastectomy — [mas tek′tə mē] n. pl. mastectomies [ MAST(O) + ECTOMY] the surgical removal of all or part of a breast, usually so as to remove cancerous tissue …   English World dictionary

  • Mastectomy — A general term for removal of the breast. usually to remove cancerous tissue. The operation can be done in a hospital or in an outpatient clinic, depending on how extensive it needs to be. It takes from two to three hours, with three to five… …   Medical dictionary

  • mastectomy — n. surgical removal of a breast. Simple mastectomy, performed for extensive but not necessarily invasive tumours, involves simple removal of the breast; the skin and if possible the nipple may be retained and a prosthesis (see breast implant) may …   The new mediacal dictionary

  • mastectomy — UK [mæˈstektəmɪ] / US noun [countable] Word forms mastectomy : singular mastectomy plural mastectomies medical a medical operation in which a woman s breast is removed …   English dictionary

  • mastectomy — [[t]mæste̱ktəmi[/t]] mastectomies N VAR A mastectomy is a surgical operation to remove a woman s breast …   English dictionary

  • Mastectomy, radical — Removal of all breast tissue, from just under the collar bone to the abdomen, including the chest wall muscles. The axillary lymph nodes are also removed. This operation is rarely used anymore, having first been replaced by the modified radical… …   Medical dictionary

  • Mastectomy, subcutaneous — Removal of breast tissue using a minimal incision. This type of mastectomy may be used to remove small areas of suspicious or cancerous tissue, but can also be a cosmetic surgery procedure. For example, subcutaneous mastectomy can reduce the… …   Medical dictionary

Share the article and excerpts

Direct link
Do a right-click on the link above
and select “Copy Link”