Why Get Orchiectomy?

It’s usually needed to treat testicular cancer. But it can also help if a testicle is damaged by infection or injury. Sometimes it’s part of prostate or breast cancer treatment.

When doctors suspect you have cancer, they usually take off a piece of a tumor and look for telltale cells under a microscope. They can’t really do that with testicular cancer because there’s the risk the cancer will spread. Instead, they almost always do what’s called a radical inguinal orchiectomy.

It’s called “radical” because it removes the spermatic cord along with the testicle and tumor. The cord has blood and lymph vessels that could let the cancer spread to other parts of the body.

In a simple orchiectomy, the doctor only removes one or both testicles. This surgery can ease symptoms, prevent problems from prostate cancer, and treat male breast cancer.

Precautions before Surgery:

If you still have one testicle, you should still be able to get an erection and have sex. If both are removed, your body won’t be able to make sperm. If you want to have children, you may want to store sperm before the procedure. Talk to your doctor to plan ahead.