Mastectomy

A simple mastectomy is the removal of as much breast tissue as possible, including the skin and nipple area.

Examples of when a mastectomy may be recommended include:

• when the cancer takes up a large area of the breast
• when there’s more than one area of cancer in the breast

If a surgeon recommends a mastectomy they will explain why. It may be possible to have a mastectomy, even if breast-conserving surgery is an option.