Is there a way to tell a malignant (cancerous) lump from benign (non-cancerous)?
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Whether a lump is cancerous is first determined by a frozen section while you are still in surgery. The Pathologist looks at the tissue for cells “not playing nice in the sandbox”. Aggressive growth, bizarre cells, polyploidy, crowding the margins of normal growth are hints that the surgeon is in the right area and how much more needs to be looked at. Sentinel lymph nodes will be screened to determine the staging of the cancer and whether it is prone to metastasis. If not, you may not need follow-up Chemo or just a burst of radiation. From that first impression, further work will be done looking at tumor markers with flow analysis or special stains and whether you inherited helper genes that enabled the cancer to grow. Then your oncologist will determine what treatment will best match your particular cancer.
Benign tumors aren’t cancerous. They can often be removed, and, in most cases, they do not come back. Cells in benign tumors do not spread to other parts of the body.
Malignant tumors are cancerous. Cells in these tumors can invade nearby tissues and spread to other parts of the body. The spread of cancer from one part of the body to another is called metastasis.