What is Nipple-Sparing Mastectomy?
A nipple-sparing mastectomy removes the breast glandular tissue while preserving the nipple-areola complex — the nipple and the darker skin around it — when the cancer, the anatomy and the treatment plan make that approach appropriate. The skin envelope is also kept. The intent is still oncological: to clear disease in the breast. Keeping the nipple is not a cosmetic upgrade you can buy independently of those facts. In selected patients the nipple can be spared without leaving tumour behind, which also helps later reconstruction. Sensation is often reduced or lost. Colour change and, uncommonly, partial or complete nipple loss from poor blood supply are recognised risks and belong in the consent.
