Remove the nipples when they do a simple mastectomy?

Usually: The gold standard oncologic mastectomy still includes removal of all the glandular tissue including the nipple/areolar complex since the ducts insert into the tip of the nipple. Leaving the nipple thus means leaving a minimal amount of breast tissue. Nipple sparing mastectomies are being done on an investigational basis for small tumors away from the nipple understanding the above.