mastectomy
Americannoun
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mastectomies
plural
noun
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Surgical removal of all or part of a breast, performed as a treatment for cancer.
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◆ A radical mastectomy includes excision of the underlying pectoral muscles and regional lymph nodes.
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Origin of mastectomy
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.
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When Rhiannon Thomas lost her hair during chemotherapy just weeks after having a mastectomy, her confidence was at an all time low.
From BBC ● Sep. 7, 2026
A mastectomy followed and she was told she was cancer-free.
From BBC ● Sep. 7, 2026
In 2013, she underwent a preventive double mastectomy over concerns of her likelihood to develop breast or ovarian cancer.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 26, 2026
She had a double mastectomy and is in the process of reconstruction with Dr. Sultan in New York.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 7, 2026
But the surgeon removed only the lump, which he said was well encapsulated and for some reason did not proceed with a radical mastectomy.
From How and When to Be Your Own Doctor by Steve Solomon
She said she has seen a 30% increase in women ages 30 to 35 coming in for reconstruction after prophylactic mastectomies in the past three years.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 7, 2026
He hopes his silk-based devices could also help treat the nerve injuries caused by surgeons, following mastectomies or prostate cancer surgery.
From BBC ● Feb. 10, 2026
“That means unnecessary mastectomies, radiotherapy and chemotherapy,” she writes.
From Salon ● May 13, 2025
Those lumpectomies and mastectomies are essentially “fear-ectomies” that remove something frightening but not medically threatening.
From Slate ● Mar. 22, 2024
On the floors above Delivery, in flowerless rooms, women lay recovering from hysterectomies and mastectomies.
From "Middlesex: A Novel" by Jeffrey Eugenides
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
