Title: Orchiectomy - procedure, blood, removal, pain, time, infection, operation, medication
Headings: Orchiectomy
Orchiectomy
Definition
Purpose
Demographics
Cancer
Gender reassignment
Description
Simple orchiectomy
Subcapsular orchiectomy
Inguinal orchiectomy
Diagnosis/Preparation
Diagnosis
Preparation
Aftercare
Risks
Normal results
Cancer
Gender reassignment
Morbidity and mortality rates
Alternatives
Cancer
Gender reassignment
Resources
books
periodicals
organizations
other
WHO PERFORMS THE PROCEDURE AND WHERE IS IT PERFORMED?
QUESTIONS TO ASK THE DOCTOR
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Content: Illustration by GGS Inc.
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removal of both testicles is known as a bilateral orchiectomy, or  castration, because the person is no longer able to reproduce. Emasculation is another word that is sometimes used for castration of a  male. Castration in women is the surgical removal of both ovaries  (bilateral oophorectomy ). Purpose
An orchiectomy is done to treat cancer or, for other reasons, to lower the  level of testosterone, the primary male sex hormone, in the body. Surgical  removal of a testicle is the usual treatment if a tumor is found within  the gland itself, but an orchiectomy may also be performed to treat  prostate cancer or cancer of the male breast, as testosterone causes these  cancers to grow and metastasize (spread to other parts of the body). An  orchiectomy is sometimes done to prevent cancer when an undescended  testicle is found in a patient who is beyond the age of puberty. A bilateral orchiectomy is commonly performed as one stage in  male-to-female (MTF) gender reassignment surgery. It is done both to lower  the levels of male hormones in the patient's body and to prepare  the genital area for later operations to construct a vagina and external  female genitalia. Some European countries and four states in the United States (California,  Florida, Montana, and Texas) allow convicted sex offenders to request  surgical castration to help control their sexual urges. This option is  considered controversial in some parts of the legal system.