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

Next Tuesday, Simpson is scheduled to have a mastectomy on the side with three tumors and a lump removal on the other, with reconstructive surgery to move fat and an artery from her abdomen to replace the removed breast. —Meg Wingerter, Denver Post, 11 Mar. 2026

The what — surgery that included a mastectomy, followed by reconstruction — became the focus. —Théoden Janes, Charlotte Observer, 9 Mar. 2026

Bishop underwent a mastectomy, chemotherapy and 15 rounds of radiation through September 2025. —Livi Stanford, Hartford Courant, 27 Feb. 2026

The melanoma was discovered when several moles were removed while the Duchess of York was undergoing reconstructive surgery following a mastectomy, USA TODAY previously reported. —Saman Shafiq, USA Today, 19 Feb. 2026

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