We all want to be healthy looking, trim and fit. However, our bodies sometimes have other plans, and we are presented with lumps and bumps.
Most of these might be benign (not cancerous), but we cannot be sure without proper investigation.
Having these attended to and sorted out while still small and manageable is far better than waiting until they are large and painful. Larger lesions result in more complex surgical excisions, and “close the hole” reconstruction becomes more challenging.
Your general practitioner or dermatologist can often remove smaller lesions (lumps and bumps), such as fatty cysts, unwanted moles, warts, or skin tags.
The sooner you consult them about these, the easier they are to remove. More complex and more extensive lesions, or lesions situated in more sensitive areas, can be removed by plastic surgeons. These procedures can be performed on an outpatient basis in specialized procedure rooms, ensuring that the experience is safe, comfortable, and stress-free.
Is your lump and bump a mass, a tumor, or a cyst?
In most cases, lumps and bumps are caused by the multiplication of cells. These cells have lost their ability to control their replication, lost their original functional capabilities, and begun to spread outside the confines of their original anatomic boundaries.
Sometimes they expand with cells or tissue fluids (like sebaceous cysts that fi ll up with sebum). They can cause harm by pressing on and destroying adjacent structures if they expand. Sometimes they are just annoying or unsightly.
Other times, however, they can be the first sign of cancer. Ignoring them can lead to devastating effects, including death.
If you are confused by all the terms you hear, I hope this will help:
Lesions:
This is a generic term used in medicine to refer to an organ or tissue that has suffered damage through injury or disease. Wounds, ulcers, abscesses, skin cancers, and cysts can all be called lesions until they have been adequately examined and specifically defined or named.
Mass:
This is another generic term to refer to an abnormal volume of tissue that can be seen, felt, or seen radiographically.
Tumour:
The word “tumour” is a Latin term that simply means swelling. However, that is not how it is used by the public, and the word often is associated with cancer.
A benign tumour is not cancerous and cannot spread through the body, while a malignant tumour, or cancer, can break away from the main tumour and spread through the body.
So instead of being frightened or confused – please have your lumps and bumps assessed by a professional.
“It is probably nothing” is not the correct approach.
Do not entrust your future well-being to family and friends, Professor Google, or your intuition.
You are far too precious for that.
