My doctor told me I have a lipoma on the back of my neck. What are the risk of surgery?

An exam would be needed to determine what the mass on your neck/upper back might be. A lipoma is a benign tumor of fatty tissue that is normally just below the skin and this would not normally cause a problem with nerves or the spine. I would say the other possibility is that there is diffuse fat accumulation in the area from some other cause, which could be hereditary, and sometimes caused from other medical conditions. This would not normally cause a problem to nerves or the spine either. If there is no treatable underlying medical issue, then it is possible that the mass could be surgically treated. There are different surgical methods that could be used, depending on the final diagnosis.

Dear Worried Welder,

That is a very large lipoma, and though lipomas are very common on the extremities and on the forehead, what I have found when they are large like this on the back they always tend to be much more involved than they appear on the surface. They have a way of infiltrating around muscle planes and so forth, and so this should be done under general anesthesia. It would still be an outpatient procedure. The other benefit of having the surgery is that you will get a definite tissue diagnosis so that there is reassurance that it is not the very rare liposarcoma.

Regarding the question of growing around nerves or my spine, that would be extraordinarily unlikely as they do not typically penetrate through the muscle layers. This is a common type of surgery.
I hope this has been helpful.
Robert D. Wilcox, M.D.

A lipoma this size and place in the upper back needs an MRI for accurate diagnosis and differential diagnosis, lipoma or buffalo hump. see your board certified plastic surgeon for work up and diagnosis and appropriate treatmentSamir Shureih MD. FACSsshureih@msn.com