Lipomas are lumps of fat that grow slowly between the skin and muscle layers. If you press gently with your finger, the lipoma feels soft and easy to shake . Lipomas are also painless when pressed.
Lipomas are more common in people aged 40–60 years or middle age and are more common in men than women. In some cases, a person can have more than one lipoma on their body.
Lipoma does not require special treatment, because it is not dangerous and is not malignant. However, lipoma removal surgery is necessary if the lipoma grows large and starts to cause pain.
Causes of Lipomas
The exact cause of lipomas is unknown, but there are several factors that can increase a person's risk of developing lipomas, namely:
- Descendants
- Age 40–60 years
- Certain diseases, such as Madelung's disease, Cowden's syndrome, Gardner's syndrome, or adiposis dolorosa
Lipoma Symptoms
Lipomas can appear anywhere on the body, but generally appear on the back , thighs, neck, arms, stomach or shoulders. Lipoma lumps have the following characteristics:
- Can grow to be much larger, from the size of a marble to the size of a ping pong ball
- It grows very slowly
- Tasted mushy like fat on beef
- Easy to shake
Lipoma lumps can cause pain if they get bigger and press on the nerves around them.
When to go to the doctor
Lumps on the surface of the body are not necessarily lipomas, but can be cysts or even malignant tumors ( cancer ) which can be fatal if not treated immediately.
Therefore, you are advised to see a doctor if you find a lump in any area of the body, whether it is small or large, soft or hard, movable or not, and painful or not.
Lipoma Diagnosis
Doctors can diagnose lipomas through a physical examination of the characteristics of the lump. Follow-up examinations are usually not necessary. However, to make sure the lump is a lipoma, the doctor can perform the following examinations:
- ultrasound
- CT scans
- MRIs
- Biopsy
The various tests above are carried out to ensure that the lump is not a malignant tumor, such as fat tissue cancer ( liposarcoma ).
Treatment of Lipoma
Lipomas often do not require special treatment, because they are not dangerous. However, there are steps you can take if a lipoma is causing discomfort, pain or discomfort, and it continues to grow in size.
The most common method for treating lipomas is surgical removal of the lump. Usually lipomas will not grow back after being removed.
In addition to surgical removal of the lump, liposuction or corticosteroid injections can be performed to reduce the size of the lipoma. However, these two methods cannot get rid of lipomas completely.