Thyreoidectomy

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. The surgical operation that removes all or part of the thyroid gland located in the front of the neck
2. A surgical procedure in which the thyroid gland, a butterfly-shaped organ in the neck, is cut out partly or entirely
3. Surgery performed to excise the thyroid gland, often to treat goiter, cancer, or an overactive thyroid

Etymology: Thyreoidectomy is a surgical term built entirely from Greek parts, and its pieces are easy to read once you know them. "Thyreos" meant a large oblong shield, and the thyroid gland was named for its shield-like shape (the Greek word "thyreoeidēs" meant shield-shaped). "Ektomē" meant a cutting out, from "ek" (out) and "temnein" (to cut), so the whole word means the cutting out of the thyroid gland. The word is a modern coinage, not an ancient one. The thyroid itself was named in the 17th century, when anatomists borrowed the Greek adjective for the gland's shape, and surgical terms built on "-ectomy" became common in the 19th century as operations on organs became more practical. Ancient Greek physicians had no such operation or word, so the term was assembled by later doctors from classical building blocks.