Most common type of mastectomy?

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Understanding mastectomy options helps explain why this type is most common. The modified radical mastectomy removes the entire breast plus the axillary lymph nodes while preserving the chest wall muscles. This combination gives good cancer control and allows nodal assessment without the extensive muscle removal of the old radical procedure, so it has become the standard approach. The radical mastectomy, which also removes chest wall muscles, is rarely used today because of higher morbidity. A simple mastectomy takes out the breast tissue but typically spares the axillary nodes, providing less nodal information. Lumpectomy is breast-conserving, not a true mastectomy, and is followed by radiation to the remaining breast tissue. So, the most common type is the modified radical mastectomy.