Tumor

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Swollen left ankle following a sprain Here, the tumor is the result of edema caused by inflammation.

Overview

A Tumor or tumour (via Old French tumour from Latin tumor "swelling")^[1] originally meant an abnormal swelling of the flesh. In contemporary English, tumor has evolved to become synonymous with neoplasia ^[1], all other forms being called swelling ^[1]. This tendency has also become common in medical literature. The noun tumefaction, derived from the adjective tumefied, is the current medical term for non-neoplastic tumors ^[1].

Causes

Tumors and/or swellings can be caused by:

• Neoplasia, an abnormal proliferation of tissues. Most (not all) neoplasms cause a tumor. Neoplasms (or tumors) may be benign or malignant (cancer).
• Non-neoplastic causes :
  • Inflammation, by far the most common cause; tumor is one of the classic signs of inflammation.^[1] The lump following a blow on the head is a typical example. Infection is another common cause of inflammation.
  • Edema, the accumulation of an excessive amount of fluid in the tissues, either with or without inflammation.
  • Malformation, a congenital anomaly in the architecture of a tissue. A typical example is an epidermal nevus.
  • Cyst, the accumulation of fluid in a closed structure. Breast cysts are a typical example.
  • Hemorrhage in a closed structure.

Other forms of swelling are part of the normal functions of the body and may or may not be included as causes of tumor. Examples include enlargement of the uterus in pregnancy and erection of the penis.

This article is intentionally kept short. For a detailed discussion, see Cancer.

References

bg:Тумор ca:Tumor cs:Nádor da:Tumor de:Tumoreo:Tumoro fa:تومور fr:Tumeur id:Tumor ku:Tûmor he:גידול it:Tumore lt:Auglys nl:Tumor ja:腫瘍 simple:Tumour no:Svulstsco:Clyre sk:Nádor fi:Kasvain sv:Tumör th:เนื้องอกur:ورم

Acknowledgement and Attribution Regarding Sources of Content

Some of the initial content on this page may be incorporated in part from copyleft sources in the public domain including wikis such as Wikipedia and AskDrWiki. Drug information for patients came from the The National Library of Medicine. Infectious disease information may have come from the Centers for Disease Control (CDC). Differential Diagnoses are drawn from clinicians as well as an amalgamation of 3 sources: 1.The Disease Database; 2. Kahan, Scott, Smith, Ellen G. In A Page: Signs and Symptoms. Malden, Massachusetts: Blackwell Publishing, 2004:3; 3. Sailer, Christian, Wasner, Susanne. Differential Diagnosis Pocket. Hermosa Beach, CA: Borm Bruckmeir Publishing LLC, 2002:7 .