'Most lumps are usually nothing to worry about,' says Dr Roshaan Saloojee, a Livi GP. 'But sometimes a lump may need treatment or immediate care. You should see a GP if you have concerns about a lump or if it persists for more than 2 weeks. '
Lumps can be on or underneath the skin. They may range from skin tags, lipoma (fatty deposits under the skin), cysts, warts, inflammatory acne, lymphoma (cancer of the lymph system), or skin cancer, including basal cell carcinoma, squamous cell carcinoma, or melanoma.
When to see a doctor. In rare cases, an unexplained lump, bump or swelling can be a sign of a more serious issue beneath the skin. Bumps that are cancerous are typically large, hard, painless to the touch and appear spontaneously. The mass will grow in size steadily over the weeks and months.
See a GP if:
your lump is hard and does not move. your lump lasts more than 2 weeks.
A tumor may feel more like a rock than a grape. A cancerous lump is usually hard, not soft or squishy. And it often has angular, irregular, asymmetrical edges, as opposed to being smooth, Dr. Comander says.
"About 10% to 20% of lumps are cancer. The rest are benign." A doctor can determine the difference through a physical exam and a biopsy if necessary. "A physical exam can hint whether the lump is bad (malignant) or harmless (benign)," says Dr.
Normal, benign lumps typically feel soft and roll easily under your fingers. They may cause pain if they become infected or inflamed. On the other hand, cancerous lumps usually grow in size and are hard, large, and painless.
In general, a noncancerous lump will feel soft and moveable. Anyone concerned about a hard lump under their skin should see a doctor for a diagnosis. Hard lumps are often nothing more than a cyst or swollen lymph node.
Benign masses are more likely to be painful to the touch, such as with an abscess. Benign tumors also tend to grow more slowly, and many are smaller than 5 cm (2 inches) at their longest point. Sarcomas (cancerous growths) more often are painless.
Fibroadenomas are solid, smooth, firm, noncancerous (benign) lumps that are most commonly found in women in their 20s and 30s. They are the most common benign lumps in women and can occur at any age. They are increasingly being seen in postmenopausal women who are taking hormone therapy.
But, what does a lump or bump look like when it is cancer, particularly sarcoma, an aggressive kind of cancer that can spread and metastasize quickly? A soft tissue sarcoma lump on the outside of the body can appear suddenly as a rounded mass beneath the skin, usually on your arm, leg, chest, or torso.
While potentially uncomfortable, these types of lumps are harmless and are not cancerous. More rarely, a lump under the skin can indicate cancer. Cancerous lumps under the skin can be harmful and should be attended to by a doctor.
Cysts can appear anywhere on your body and may look and feel like a small, hard pea. The most common causes of cyst formation include clogged oil glands, infections, and a growth that develops around a foreign body such as an earring or navel ring.
'If you're worried about a lump, or it's been there for more than 2 weeks, speak to a doctor to get it checked out as soon as possible,' says Dr Saloojee. 'Regularly examining your body is vital because spotting any new lumps quickly can be an important way to catch anything serious early. '
Hard lumps are usually harmless, but in rare cases, may be a symptom of a serious condition. See a medical professional if you notice: A lump that is hard, painless, and immovable. Pain around the lump area.
Lumps that are benign (not cancer) may be tender and feel smooth and mobile. A cancerous lump is more likely to feel hard, but some non-cancerous lumps can feel hard, too.
Cancers tend to feel much harder than benign cysts and fibroadenomas. Both benign and malignant masses can be rounded and mobile. Only when cancers are quite advanced are they fixed to skin or the underlying chest wall, and not moveable.
Biopsy. In most cases, doctors need to do a biopsy to be certain that you have cancer. A biopsy is a procedure in which the doctor removes a sample of abnormal tissue. A pathologist looks at the tissue under a microscope and runs other tests on the cells in the sample.
Precancers are also called dysplasias, a term that means that abnormal cells have been found in the tissue. Dysplasias aren't cancer, but may become cancer, and are graded as mild, moderate or severe depending on how abnormal the cells look compared to healthy cells.
Imaging tests used in diagnosing cancer may include a computerized tomography (CT) scan, bone scan, magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), positron emission tomography (PET) scan, ultrasound and X-ray, among others. Biopsy. During a biopsy, your doctor collects a sample of cells for testing in the laboratory.