Differences Between a Malignant and Benign Tumor - Verywell Health

If you have been diagnosed with a tumor, the first step your healthcare provider will take is to find out whether it is malignant or benign, as this will affect your treatment plan. In short, the meaning of malignant is cancerous and the meaning of benign is noncancerous. Learn more about how either diagnosis affects your health.

Verywell / Joshua Seong

What Is a Tumor?

A tumor is an abnormal lump or growth of cells. When the cells in the tumor are normal, it is benign. Something just went wrong, and they overgrew and produced a lump. When the cells are abnormal and can grow uncontrollably, they are cancerous cells, and the tumor is malignant.

To determine whether a tumor is benign or cancerous, a healthcare provider can take a sample of the cells with a biopsy procedure. Then the biopsy is analyzed under a microscope by a pathologist, a healthcare provider specializing in laboratory science.

Benign Tumors: Noncancerous

If the cells are not cancerous, the tumor is benign. It won't invade nearby tissues or spread to other areas of the body (metastasize). A benign tumor is less worrisome unless it is pressing on nearby tissues, nerves, or blood vessels and causing damage. Fibroids in the uterus or lipomas are examples of benign tumors.

Benign tumors may need to be removed by surgery. They can grow very large, sometimes weighing pounds. They can be dangerous, such as when they occur in the brain and crowd the normal structures in the enclosed space of the skull. They can press on vital organs or block channels.

Some types of benign tumors such as intestinal polyps are considered precancerous and are removed to prevent them from becoming malignant. Benign tumors usually don't recur once removed, but if they do, it is usually in the same place.

Malignant Tumors: Cancerous

Malignant means that the tumor is made of cancer cells, and it can invade nearby tissues. Some cancer cells can move into the bloodstream or lymph nodes, where they can spread to other tissues within the body—this is called metastasis. Cancer can occur anywhere in the body including the breast, intestines, lungs, reproductive organs, blood, and skin.

For example, breast cancer begins in the breast tissue and may spread to lymph nodes in the armpit if it's not caught early enough and treated. Once breast cancer has spread to the lymph nodes, the cancer cells can travel to other areas of the body, like the liver or bones.

The breast cancer cells can then form tumors in those locations. A biopsy of these tumors might show characteristics of the original breast cancer tumor.

Differences Between Benign and Malignant Tumors

Although there are exceptions—for example, although most malignant tumors grow rapidly and most benign ones do not, there are examples of both slow-growing cancerous tumors and noncancerous ones that grow quickly—the main differences between the two types of tumors are clear and consistent. Here's a snapshot of the main ones:

Characteristics of Benign Tumors

• Cells tend not to spread

• Most grow slowly

• Do not invade nearby tissue

• Do not metastasize (spread) to other parts of the body

• Tend to have clear boundaries

• Under a pathologist's microscope, shape, chromosomes, and DNA of cells appear normal

• Do not secrete hormones or other substances (an exception: pheochromocytomas of the adrenal gland)

• May not require treatment if not health-threatening

• Unlikely to recur if removed or require further treatment such as radiation or chemotherapy

Characteristics of Malignant Tumors

• Cells can spread

• Usually grow fairly rapidly

• Often invade basal membrane that surrounds nearby healthy tissue

• Can spread via bloodstream or lymphatic system, or by sending "fingers" into nearby tissue

• May recur after removal, sometimes in areas other the original site

• Cells have abnormal chromosomes and DNA characterized by large, dark nuclei; may have abnormal shape

• Can secrete substances that cause fatigue and weight loss (paraneoplastic syndrome)

• May require aggressive treatment, including surgery, radiation, chemotherapy, and immunotherapy medications

Can a Benign Tumor Turn Malignant?

Some types of benign tumors only very rarely transform into malignant tumors. But some types, such as adenomatous polyps (adenomas) in the colon have a greater risk of transforming into cancer. That is why polyps, which are benign, are removed during colonoscopy. Removing them is one way of preventing colon cancer.

It's not always clear-cut whether a tumor is benign or malignant, and your healthcare provider may use several different factors to diagnose it as one or the other. You may end up with an uncertain diagnosis.

Also, it is possible that a biopsy finds precancerous cells or misses the area where the cancerous cells are more prevalent. In these cases, what was thought to be benign might turn out to be malignant as it further grows and develops.

What Your Tumor Diagnosis Means

If you have been diagnosed with a malignant tumor, your oncologist (cancer doctor) will devise a treatment plan with you based on the stage of cancer. Early-stage cancers haven't spread much, if at all, whereas later-stage cancers have spread to more areas of the body.

Determining the stage of cancer may require biopsies, surgery, and/or imaging tests. Once the cancer stage is determined, you can proceed with therapy.

If you have been diagnosed with a benign tumor, your healthcare provider will provide reassurance that you do not have cancer. Depending on the type of benign tumor, your healthcare provider may recommend observation or removal for cosmetic or health purposes (for instance, the tumor may be compromising an important organ in your body).

A Word From Verywell

Being diagnosed with a tumor can be an anxiety-ridden experience. Be sure to discuss your concerns with your healthcare provider and ask whether there are any support groups that you can join. And remember, the earlier that you or your healthcare provider detects a lump, the more likely the tumor is treatable. So if you notice something unusual on your body, don't wait to tell your healthcare provider.

Frequently Asked Questions

• The average five-year survival rate for patients with any type of brain tumor is 75%, but this varies by age, tumor type, and exact location in the brain. For benign tumors, the five-year survival rate is 91%. This rate drops to 36% for malignant tumors.

• Surgical removal of the tumor is often used for both benign and malignant tumors. Often, this is the only treatment needed for benign tumors. In many cases, benign tumors are merely observed and do not require removal. Malignant tumors may or may not be removed, and may also require treatment with radiation and/or chemotherapy.

  However, treatment of each type can vary depending on tumor size, location, age of the patient, stage of the cancer for malignant tumors, and overall health of the patient.