mastectomy

American

[ma-stek-tuh-mee] / mæˈstɛk tə mi /

noun

Surgery.

plural

mastectomies

the operation of removing all or part of the breast or mamma.

mastectomy British

/ mæˈstɛktəmɪ /

noun

the surgical removal of a breast

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

mastectomy Scientific

/ mă-stĕk′tə-mē /

Surgical removal of all or part of a breast, performed as a treatment for cancer.
◆ A radical mastectomy includes excision of the underlying pectoral muscles and regional lymph nodes.

mastectomy Cultural

The surgical removal of a breast.

Other Word Forms

postmastectomy adjective

Etymology

Origin of mastectomy

First recorded in 1920–25; mast- + -ectomy

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

Sloan is currently waiting for a mastectomy, which requires the removal or one or both of the breasts as a method of treating or preventing future cancer growths.

From BBC

At 19, I had “top surgery”—a euphemism for an elective double mastectomy.

From The Wall Street Journal

He hopes his silk-based devices could also help treat the nerve injuries caused by surgeons, following mastectomies or prostate cancer surgery.

From BBC

A jury last month found that a psychologist and surgeon had committed malpractice over a double mastectomy performed on a 16-year-old without adequate consent.

From The Wall Street Journal

US actor Angelina Jolie revealed her double mastectomy scars in a photo shoot for Time France, in the magazine's first French edition that launched this week.

From Barron's

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023