Please note that the content of this book primarily consists of articles available from Wikipedia or other free sources online. Radical mastectomy is a surgical procedure in which the breast, underlying chest muscle (including pectoralis major and pectoralis minor), and lymph nodes of the axilla are removed as a treatment for breast cancer. It was developed and first performed by William Stewart Halsted in 1882. From about 1895 to the mid-1970s about 90% of the women being treated for breast cancer in the US underwent the radical mastectomy. This is a very morbid surgery and is not performed except in extreme cases. Technique Incision : (1) elliptical skin incision ( mayer''s incision ) including akin , nipple and areola overlying the tumour extending 5 c.m around tumour (2) linear incision extending from coracoid process of scapula down to midline below xiphoid process.