My roommate (ex) has a lump on his left shoulder. He has had it for a few months. He said today that it is now an inch or so wide and a 1/4 inch in height. It isn't hurting or anything. He will not go to a doctor. He has to go for a medical in a month to renew his license. Is this something he should be worried about. He was saying maybe it's cancer. Any ideas?

Does it seem to be fixed to the bone (could be a bone cyst) or does it seem to be just under the skin (likely a subcutaneous lipoma, a benign -- non-cancerous -- tumor of fat). Or is it just above or just below the collarbone, which might be a swollen lymph node due to recent infection in that arm?

Obviously he should see a doctor if concerned. Cancer is possible but unlikely.

If he does have cancer the surrounding lymph nodes can swell and look and feel like a lump under the skin. My friend's husband had a lump at his collarbone and after several months finally went to the doctor. Tests revealed he had cancer at the base of his tongue and the cancer had also spread to the lymph node. Had he not gone to check out what he thought was a harmless lump he would never have been treated for the cancer. This is an extreme case, I know, but it's always good to get something like this checked out.

It is right at the end of his shoulder. The rounded part of your shoulder. Sorry don't know the actual name. He hasn't hurt it on anything. Just appeared one day and has just gotten bigger.

FYI: The "point of the shoulder" is the acromion, which is actually part of the shoulder-blade bone. The rounded muscle at the top of the arm, where people often get shots, is the deltoid muscle.

Does the lump move around easily with the skin, or does the skin move over the lump while the lump stays put?

Any lump or bump that lasts more than 2 weeks needs to be checked by a doctor - even if it is caused by a injury that doesn't break the skin, a bug bite, etc.

Personally I would be concerned (not necessarily worried) over a lump that is growing. Now I have lumps on my body which appear but I have a good reason to believe they are related to another issue I have and not cancer.

Is waiting a month going to hurt anything? Depends on what this lump contains. If it contains a malignancy which is likely to get into the blood stream and spread - then waiting a month may be signing a death sentence. When in doubt go to a professional – don’t wait, don’t put it off deal with it ASAP.

If it helps tell him David said to get off the couch and go to the doctor NOW!

If it further motivates tell him David said it’s a cancer and can kill him if he waits. That’s my diagnoses based on the information given – Cancer, malignant, dangerous and needing of treatment Stat!

Scare tactics? You bet!

Mostly likely the doctor will find its “nothing” meaning it isn’t dangerous – but I would hate to find out that that was a wrong thought and in fact waiting a month made the difference between curing and death.