The Drs: Benign Lipoma
The Doctors had their cameras rolling as one woman had a fatty mass called a lipoma removed from her arm. (terekhov igor / Shutterstock.com)
The Doctors shared that over a span of six years, a woman named Melanie noticed that a mass on her arm had gotten to be so big that she just couldn’t ignore it anymore. She finally saw dermatologist Dr Sandra Lee to see what was going on. The lump was about the size of a golf ball and when her doctor looked at it she was told it was a lipoma, which is a fatty mass deposit. She said it’s very sore and almost feels like someone punched her. When she got married, she asked the photographer to Photoshop her lipoma out of all her pictures.
Dr Sandra Lee explained that because of the mobility, more than likely the lipoma is benign. Dr Lee numbed the area and pretty easily removed the lipoma from Melanie’s arm through a small incision before stitching her up. After seeing what the lump looked like, Melanie decided to name it Felicia, just so that she could say “bye, Felicia!”
The Drs: Removing a Lipoma
They shared a before and after picture of Melanie, and the small 1 1/2″ scar that will eventually fade. Dr Lee explained that lipomas are common, and said she likes to describe them as a fat cell that decided to divide and create a group of them. She said the signs she looks for is that it’s mobile, moves around, and shouldn’t be painful. Typically, people can have more than one, and they tend to run in the family.
Dr Lee laughed and said lipomas are fun to take out. Dr Travis Stork said they’re easy to have taken care of, so if you think you have a lipoma, get it checked out.
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