Definition

A lipoma is a harmless lump of fat. There are several types, mainly classified by where they appear. The most common location is just beneath the skin, where they are easily felt. But, lipomas can occur anywhere.

Most tissue in the body can grow beyond its normal limits and form a lump or tumor. Tumors come in two forms:

• Benign—stop growing after they reach a certain size (eg, moles , polyps, lipomas); some can turn into cancer, but lipomas do not
• Malignant—cancer, rarely stops growing

Benign Tumor

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