Glossary
| TERM | EXPLANATION |
|---|---|
| Bilateral mastectomy (BMX) or double mastectomy (DMX | Both breasts surgically removed. Also known as being Double-Flat |
| Breast reduction | An operation to make breasts feel smaller or lighter. |
| Concave | Curved inwards, appearing hollow or sunken |
| Contralateral prophylactic mastectomy (CPM) | Having an unaffected breast removed due to increased risk of developing a primary breast cancer in the future. |
| Contralateral symmetrising mastectomy (CSM) | Having an unaffected breast removed to achieve symmetry (also known as Flat Symmetry) |
| Cording | The feeling of a tight cord in your armpit and down your arm |
| Dog ears | Excess tissue, fat, and skin at the edge of mastectomy scars |
| Drains | A small plastic tube that is sometimes put inside the chest during a mastectomy to drain excess fluid into a bag outside of your body |
| Fat grafting | Transferring fat from one area of the body to improve the look of dents or unevenness. Also knownas Lipomodelling. |
| Fine needle aspiration/ biopsy | A sample of cells are taken using a needle and syringe |
| Flat closure | A mastectomy for someone who has no plans to have reconstruction in the future. A smooth chest, without excess skin or tissue. See also, ‘Living Flat’ |
| Flat symmetry | Having both breasts removed so your chest is flat on both sides. Symmetry achieved without breast reconstruction. |
| Goldilocks mastectomy | A mastectomy where a layer of fat and skin are left to create a mound. |
| Haematoma | A collection of blood around a wound |
| Invasive breast cancer | Cancer that shows the potential to spread to other areas of the body. |
| Keloid scar | A type of scar that looks raised, hard and shiny. |
| Living Flat | Living without breast reconstruction after either a single or double mastectomy. Applies whether breast prostheses are worn or not. |
| Lumpectomy | Breast-conserving surgery to remove breast cancer along with a margin of healthy tissue (also known as Wide Local Excision, WLE) |
| Lymph nodes | Small pea-sized nodes which drain and filter fluid in the body. Nodes in the armpit are known as Axillary lymph nodes. |
| Lymphoedema | A build-up of fluid causing long-term swelling of the tissues, such as the arm or chest. |
| Mastectomy | A surgical operation to remove a breast. |
| Pathology report | The results of tests performed on breast tissue removed during surgery. |
| Phantom nipple | The sensation that the nipple that has been removed is still there, often feeling itchy. |
| Post-mastectomy pain syndrome | Chronic nerve pain experienced after mastectomysurgery, also known as PMPS. |
| Prostheses | Breast forms worn inside bra cups or bra tops to give the illusion of a breast or breasts. |
| Radiotherapy | A precise dose of radiation, like an x-ray given to the breast area after mastectomy to kill any remaining cancer cells. |
| Risk reducing mastectomy | A mastectomy for someone who has inherited a faulty gene which increases their risk of developing breast cancer in the future. |
| Sentinel lymph node biopsy | A surgical biopsy using radioactive dye injected into the breast to identify the node closest to the lymph vessels connected to the breast. This node is then tested to see if it contains cancer cells. |
| Seroma | A collection of fluid around a wound |
| Simple mastectomy | An operation to remove all breast tissue, skin, areola and nipple |
| Skin-sparing mastectomy | A mastectomy where most of the skin that covered the breast is left for future breast reconstruction. |
| Ultrasound scan | A handheld probe is placed on the skin and using high-frequency sound waves it creates an image of inside of the body. |
| Unilateral mastectomy or single mastectomy | One breast surgically removed. Also known as being Single-Flat. |
| Wide local excision (WLE) | Breast-conserving surgery to remove breast cancer along with a margin of healthy tissue (also known as Lumpectomy). |