“Should my lipoma be removed?”
I'm a 48 year old female who has a small lipoma on my arm. It hasn't grown since it was diagnosed, but should my lipoma be removed?
8 Answers
Yes, it can become cancer.
Dr. David Carlson
Surgeon
This sounds like a patient choice. If it is bothersome or unsightly you can be removed under local anesthesia. If it is asymptomatic and small there is no medical need to remove it.
If it is a lipoma confirmed by a physician and is not bothering you, you can leave it.
Almost all lipomas are benign and do not cause any problems. I recommend removal only if they are causing pain, tenderness, or other symptoms due to its location, or is growing in size.
There are a few reasons to have lipomas removed.
1. It causes pain, discomfort, or is in a bothersome location (where your arm bends, a bra line, etc.)
2. It is growing in size.
3. There are concerning features such as a firmness or irregular borders.
If it is stable, soft, and causes no problems, there is no reason to remove it unless you want.
1. It causes pain, discomfort, or is in a bothersome location (where your arm bends, a bra line, etc.)
2. It is growing in size.
3. There are concerning features such as a firmness or irregular borders.
If it is stable, soft, and causes no problems, there is no reason to remove it unless you want.
You never need to remove a lipoma. The most common reasons to remove them is either for cosmetic reasons (you don't like the way it looks) or if it is in a location that is causing pain. They often occur at areas of constant mechanical irritation such as bra straps, underwear waist bands or on the back. If it hurts or bothers you, it is fine to remove, however, there is no medical urgency to do so.
A lipoma is a fatty tumor that is slow growing. If it is unchanged and does not bother you (no pain, does not impair your movement of your arm) you can leave it alone and continue having it monitored by your primary care. It should first be checked by a physician to ensure it is only a lipoma.
Yes it should be removed and it would only have a very small if any scar. There’s always a chance that a lipoma may not be a lipoma after all but could be a liposarcoma and to air on the side of caution I would remove it.
