{"entity":{"id":"mastectomy","kind":"term","name":"Mastectomy","aka":["mastectomies","risk-reducing mastectomy","prophylactic mastectomy","nipple-sparing mastectomy"],"tldr":"Removing the whole breast, either for cancer or preventively in BRCA1/2 carriers, where bilateral risk-reducing mastectomy cuts breast cancer risk by 90% or more. For most early cancers, lumpectomy plus radiotherapy works as well, so mastectomy is chosen for large or multicentric tumours, inflammatory cancer, or patient preference.","summary":"Total mastectomy removes breast tissue; modified radical adds axillary nodes; skin- and nipple-sparing variants allow immediate reconstruction with implants or the patient's own tissue. For most early cancers, lumpectomy plus radiotherapy gives identical survival (NSABP B-06, Milan trials), so mastectomy is chosen for large or multicentric tumours, inflammatory cancer, or patient preference. Bilateral risk-reducing mastectomy cuts breast cancer risk by 90% or more in BRCA1/2 carriers.","asOf":"2026-09-09","wikipedia":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mastectomy","links":[{"label":"Wikipedia","url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mastectomy"},{"label":"Macmillan: removing the breast (mastectomy)","url":"https://www.macmillan.org.uk/cancer-information-and-support/treatments-and-drugs/removing-the-breast-mastectomy"},{"label":"NHS: mastectomy","url":"https://www.nhs.uk/tests-and-treatments/mastectomy/"},{"label":"NICE NG101: early and locally advanced breast cancer, recommendations (updated 2025)","url":"https://www.nice.org.uk/guidance/ng101/chapter/Recommendations"},{"label":"Cancer Research UK: breast reconstruction","url":"https://www.cancerresearchuk.org/about-cancer/breast-cancer/treatment/surgery/breast-reconstruction"}],"tags":[],"related":["lumpectomy","sentinel-lymph-node-biopsy","gbrca-mutation","breast-reconstruction","breast-conserving-surgery-versus-mastectomy","post-mastectomy-radiotherapy","oncoplastic-breast-surgery"],"cancers":["breast-hr-positive","breast-her2-positive","tnbc","breast-cancer"],"sections":["surgery"],"technologies":[],"targets":["brca"],"drugs":[],"companies":[],"institutions":[],"pathways":[],"terms":[],"trials":["nsabp-b06","milan-i","nsabp-b04","supremo"],"people":[],"bottlenecks":[],"keyPapers":[],"journals":[],"dependsOn":[],"notes":["Triple-negative breast cancer, reconstruction timing: NICE NG101 says offer reconstruction after mastectomy, offer both immediate and delayed options whether or not they are available locally, and offer immediate reconstruction to women advised to have a mastectomy including those who may need radiotherapy; its table notes that implant reconstructions may be more affected by radiotherapy than flap reconstructions and that complications can delay chemotherapy or radiotherapy. The NHS says recovery takes several weeks, with wounds healing in about 6 weeks. Macmillan says you may choose no reconstruction and wear a prosthesis instead.","When a mastectomy is recommended rather than chosen. Macmillan says surgeons try to do an operation that means you can keep your breast, and that a mastectomy may be recommended when the lump is large compared to the rest of the breast, when there is cancer in different parts of the breast (multicentric), when there is widespread DCIS, when the cancer is on the skin or in the underlying muscle, when you have had radiotherapy to the chest before to treat another cancer, or when you have a family history and have tested positive for a gene mutation.","A mastectomy does not always avoid radiotherapy. NICE NG101 (1.13.10) says to offer adjuvant postmastectomy radiotherapy to people with node-positive (macrometastases) invasive breast cancer or involved resection margins, (1.13.11) to consider it for node-negative T3 or T4 disease, and (1.13.12) not to offer it to people at low risk of local recurrence, for example most people with lymph node-negative breast cancer.","NICE NG101 (1.5.1) says to offer breast reconstruction to people after they have had a mastectomy for breast cancer, and (1.5.2) to be aware that some people may prefer not to have it. Cancer Research UK says a surgeon may be able to improve the appearance of the chest with further surgery after a mastectomy, and that a prosthesis is an alternative to reconstruction."],"category":"Procedures"},"route":"/terms/mastectomy/","neighbours":{"term":[{"id":"body-image-after-breast-surgery","kind":"term","name":"Body image after breast surgery and reconstruction","route":"/terms/body-image-after-breast-surgery/"},{"id":"breast-conserving-surgery-versus-mastectomy","kind":"term","name":"Breast conservation or mastectomy","route":"/terms/breast-conserving-surgery-versus-mastectomy/"},{"id":"bia-alcl","kind":"term","name":"Breast implant-associated anaplastic large cell lymphoma","route":"/terms/bia-alcl/"},{"id":"breast-reconstruction","kind":"term","name":"Breast reconstruction","route":"/terms/breast-reconstruction/"},{"id":"gbrca-mutation","kind":"term","name":"Germline BRCA mutation (gBRCA)","route":"/terms/gbrca-mutation/"},{"id":"lumpectomy","kind":"term","name":"Lumpectomy (breast-conserving surgery)","route":"/terms/lumpectomy/"},{"id":"breast-margins-and-re-excision","kind":"term","name":"Margins after breast-conserving surgery, and second operations","route":"/terms/breast-margins-and-re-excision/"},{"id":"numbness-after-breast-surgery","kind":"term","name":"Numbness and nerve pain after breast surgery","route":"/terms/numbness-after-breast-surgery/"},{"id":"oncoplastic-breast-surgery","kind":"term","name":"Oncoplastic breast surgery","route":"/terms/oncoplastic-breast-surgery/"},{"id":"post-mastectomy-radiotherapy","kind":"term","name":"Radiotherapy after mastectomy","route":"/terms/post-mastectomy-radiotherapy/"},{"id":"risk-reducing-surgery-brca-carriers","kind":"term","name":"Risk-reducing surgery for BRCA carriers (bilateral and contralateral mastectomy, salpingo-oophorectomy)","route":"/terms/risk-reducing-surgery-brca-carriers/"},{"id":"sentinel-lymph-node-biopsy","kind":"term","name":"Sentinel node biopsy","route":"/terms/sentinel-lymph-node-biopsy/"},{"id":"seroma-after-breast-surgery","kind":"term","name":"Seroma after breast surgery","route":"/terms/seroma-after-breast-surgery/"}],"cancer":[{"id":"adenoid-cystic-carcinoma-breast","kind":"cancer","name":"Adenoid cystic carcinoma of the breast","route":"/cancers/adenoid-cystic-carcinoma-breast/"},{"id":"brca-associated-tnbc","kind":"cancer","name":"BRCA-associated triple-negative breast cancer","route":"/cancers/brca-associated-tnbc/"},{"id":"breast-cancer","kind":"cancer","name":"Breast cancer (all types)","route":"/cancers/breast-cancer/"},{"id":"ductal-carcinoma-in-situ","kind":"cancer","name":"Ductal carcinoma in situ (DCIS)","route":"/cancers/ductal-carcinoma-in-situ/"},{"id":"her2-positive-early-breast-cancer","kind":"cancer","name":"Early HER2-positive breast cancer","route":"/cancers/her2-positive-early-breast-cancer/"},{"id":"tnbc-early","kind":"cancer","name":"Early triple-negative breast cancer","route":"/cancers/tnbc-early/"},{"id":"breast-her2-positive","kind":"cancer","name":"HER2-positive breast cancer","route":"/cancers/breast-her2-positive/"},{"id":"hr-positive-early-high-risk","kind":"cancer","name":"High-risk early HR-positive breast cancer","route":"/cancers/hr-positive-early-high-risk/"},{"id":"breast-hr-positive","kind":"cancer","name":"HR-positive / HER2-negative breast cancer","route":"/cancers/breast-hr-positive/"},{"id":"inflammatory-breast-cancer","kind":"cancer","name":"Inflammatory breast cancer","route":"/cancers/inflammatory-breast-cancer/"},{"id":"invasive-lobular-carcinoma","kind":"cancer","name":"Invasive lobular carcinoma of the breast","route":"/cancers/invasive-lobular-carcinoma/"},{"id":"lobular-carcinoma-in-situ","kind":"cancer","name":"Lobular carcinoma in situ (LCIS)","route":"/cancers/lobular-carcinoma-in-situ/"},{"id":"male-breast-cancer","kind":"cancer","name":"Male breast cancer","route":"/cancers/male-breast-cancer/"},{"id":"metaplastic-breast-carcinoma","kind":"cancer","name":"Metaplastic breast carcinoma","route":"/cancers/metaplastic-breast-carcinoma/"},{"id":"paget-disease-of-the-nipple","kind":"cancer","name":"Paget disease of the nipple","route":"/cancers/paget-disease-of-the-nipple/"},{"id":"phyllodes-tumour","kind":"cancer","name":"Phyllodes tumour of the breast","route":"/cancers/phyllodes-tumour/"},{"id":"secretory-carcinoma-breast","kind":"cancer","name":"Secretory carcinoma of the breast","route":"/cancers/secretory-carcinoma-breast/"},{"id":"tnbc","kind":"cancer","name":"Triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC)","route":"/cancers/tnbc/"}],"section":[{"id":"surgery","kind":"section","name":"Surgery & Interventional","route":"/fronts/surgery/"}],"target":[{"id":"brca","kind":"target","name":"BRCA1 / BRCA2 (HRD)","route":"/targets/brca/"}],"trial":[{"id":"best-bra","kind":"trial","name":"Best-BRA","route":"/trials/best-bra/"},{"id":"eortc-10801","kind":"trial","name":"EORTC 10801","route":"/trials/eortc-10801/"},{"id":"ibra-study","kind":"trial","name":"iBRA (implant Breast Reconstruction evAluation)","route":"/trials/ibra-study/"},{"id":"mroc","kind":"trial","name":"Mastectomy Reconstruction Outcomes Consortium (MROC)","route":"/trials/mroc/"},{"id":"milan-i","kind":"trial","name":"Milan I (quadrantectomy against radical mastectomy)","route":"/trials/milan-i/"},{"id":"nsabp-b04","kind":"trial","name":"NSABP B-04","route":"/trials/nsabp-b04/"},{"id":"nsabp-b06","kind":"trial","name":"NSABP B-06","route":"/trials/nsabp-b06/"},{"id":"pre-bra","kind":"trial","name":"Pre-BRA (pre-pectoral breast reconstruction evaluation)","route":"/trials/pre-bra/"},{"id":"supremo","kind":"trial","name":"SUPREMO (BIG 2-04)","route":"/trials/supremo/"}],"collection":[{"id":"knitted-knockers","kind":"collection","name":"Knitted Knockers","route":"/collections/knitted-knockers/"}]}}