What is preventive mastectomy?
Preventive or prophylactic mastectomy is the removal of one or more breasts to reduce the risk of getting breast cancer. Some women who have a very high risk of breast cancer choose this alternative. Prophylactic mastectomy has been shown to reduce the risk of breast cancer by 90 percent in very high-risk women. However, some women who have had this surgery have regretted it afterward. This irreversible decision should be made carefully, following extensive consultation with a breast cancer expert and genetic counselor about risk, benefits, and other alternatives. Women who consider prophylactic mastectomy are often advised about prophylactic oophorectomy – removal of the ovaries. This is considered because women with genes for breast cancer risk may also be at high risk for ovarian cancer. Removing the ovaries in premenopausal women may decrease breast cancer risk, as well.
