Colon Lipoma

A lipoma is essentially a tumor-like abnormality characterized by the atypical presence of fat tissue. A lipoma in the walls of the colon is not an uncommon clinical occurrence. The cause of lipoma formation is not very clear yet. Most researchers believe that there is a definite link between trauma and lipoma formation. In the colon, a previous surgery or herniation of fat in the region could potentially lead to formation of a lipoma. There is also the theory of gene mutation that has been proposed as a cause of lipoma. A colon lipoma can be detected as a small elevated or enlarged mass located just beneath the mucous membrane of the colon wall. If undetected, colon lipomas are generally asymptomatic.

Detection and diagnosis

Most lipomas in the colon tend to be undetected for long periods of time. Sometimes, the superficial mucous membrane of the colon gets eroded causing the underlying lipoma to bleed. In such instances, blood may be detected in the stools and patients may also present with pain in the abdomen, diarrhea, abdominal discomfort and rectal bleeding. After detection by colonoscopy, a final diagnosis is arrived at using certain non invasive diagnostic techniques. Generally, biopsy of a colon lipoma is not done because biopsy could potentially cause bleeding.

Treatment of colon Lipomas

Treatment of lipomas of the large intestine can be quite tricky and is usually left to the doctor’s discretion. Small and asymptomatic lipomas are left untreated and such patients are advised to make periodic follow-ups to make sure that the lipoma has not progressed. In patients with larger colon lipomas or those who have been showing complications as result of these lipomas may need to undergo surgery. Lipomas are in general benign in nature and do not require treatment unless absolutely necessary. Also, lipomas, unlike most benign tumors, show a strikingly low rate of transforming into malignant tumors. With lipomas of the colon, women are generally more commonly affected than men and the ascending colon is affected more than any other part of the colon. Untreated large colon lipomas can cause obstruction of the colon and may lead to difficulty in passing stools, along with worsening of any symptoms that may already be present.

Another interesting statistic is that about ninety percent of colon lipomas are present singularly and just ten percent at multiple sites along the large intestine. Since the diagnosis is usually made without a biopsy, it must be done carefully and accurately. It must especially be differentiated from cysts and abscess because the line of treatment will change markedly for either of these.

Good Health Practices

Although colon cleansing and colon irrigation procedures have not known to prevent colon lipomas, they are still considered good health practices. In general, patients undergoing such cleansing procedures are associated with better colon health and lesser incidence of lesions in the large intestine. It is important that during your first colon cleanse you are relaxed. Usually, colon cleansing procedures take about forty five minutes to an hour, but the first appointment is likely to take a little bit longer.