# Why aren't elective mastectomies a 'thing'?

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-arent-elective-mastectomies-a-thing/1022840>\
**Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\
**Created:** [September 8, 2025, 7:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-arent-elective-mastectomies-a-thing/1022840 "2025-09-08T07:54:41Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 4\
**Page:** 3

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**Author:** ![FinsToTheLeft](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/finstotheleft/32/2930_2.png) [@FinsToTheLeft](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FinsToTheLeft)\
**Post date:** [September 13, 2025, 2:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-arent-elective-mastectomies-a-thing/1022840/41 "2025-09-13T02:14:46Z")

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> [@Cartooniverse](#):
>
> I’ve also held one male 8 day-old baby boy as he got his foreskin removed. It did not take 10 minutes. It took…well, about 30 seconds of careful work with the [cutting device designed for the task.](https://medical-tools.com/shop/mogen-circumcision-instrument-7-5cm-urology-instruments.html?srsltid=AfmBOopR0mbBf3_L6qbjqS6g1rp1AsuPkrRElfi1ZGvcv-Z7mDN_Xrzo) \*\* This is a Work-Safe site showing a surgical device and does NOT show any surgical procedure \*\*

The actual cutting is seconds, the whole procedure is minutes. Again, where I am circumcisions are not covered but all medically necessary surgery, including gender reassignment surgery, is. I’ve passed two babies over for their bris, I’m personally glad that I only had girls.

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**Author:** ![wolfpup](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wolfpup/32/10618_2.png) [@wolfpup](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wolfpup)\
**Post date:** [September 13, 2025, 2:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-arent-elective-mastectomies-a-thing/1022840/42 "2025-09-13T02:19:02Z")

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> [@Cartooniverse](#):
>
> It took…well, about 30 seconds of careful work with the [cutting device designed for the task.](https://medical-tools.com/shop/mogen-circumcision-instrument-7-5cm-urology-instruments.html?srsltid=AfmBOopR0mbBf3_L6qbjqS6g1rp1AsuPkrRElfi1ZGvcv-Z7mDN_Xrzo)

Can also be used to snip hand-rolled Cuban cigars. Attractively fashioned in dull-polished stainless steel, it makes a great gift for your favourite cigar smoker! 😃

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**Author:** ![puzzlegal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/puzzlegal/32/3827_2.png) [@puzzlegal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/puzzlegal)\
**Post date:** [September 13, 2025, 5:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-arent-elective-mastectomies-a-thing/1022840/43 "2025-09-13T05:52:51Z")

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> [@Cartooniverse](#):
>
> Outside of cultural requirements, there is and never has been a health-related reason to remove the foreskin.

While there’s no medical reason for routine circumcision, there are certainly medical reasons to do it. I had to get a kitten circumcised, once, and i can assure you there were no cultural requirements to do that.

His foreskin was swollen, preventing him from peeing. He nearly died, the circumcision was literally life-saving. And a friend who grew up in Spain, where infant circumcision is rare, told me that a lot of his classmates needed to have it done shortly after puberty. It’s apparently more commonly needed in sandy or dusty environments. (The kitten had issues that wouldn’t have happened to a human.)

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**Author:** ![Cartooniverse](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cartooniverse/32/3084_2.png) [@Cartooniverse](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cartooniverse)\
**Post date:** [September 13, 2025, 3:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-arent-elective-mastectomies-a-thing/1022840/44 "2025-09-13T15:56:22Z")

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> [@FinsToTheLeft](#):
>
> The actual cutting is seconds, the whole procedure is minutes. Again, where I am circumcisions are not covered but all medically necessary surgery, including gender reassignment surgery, is. I’ve passed two babies over for their bris, I’m personally glad that I only had girls.

… Which is why people ask about Passover, “Why is this night different from all other nights?”  
😃

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