What does pelvic mass mean?

The pelvic cavity is a woman's internal reproductive organ. The ovaries, uterus, and fallopian tubes are located in the pelvic cavity. If there is an abnormality in this area, the direct consequence is that it affects the woman's fertility. In fact, most female infertility is caused by pelvic problems. During a pelvic examination, some women conclude that they have a pelvic mass. So, what does pelvic mass mean? Let’s take a look at it below.

Space occupying lesions

Space-occupying lesions are a special term in medical imaging diagnosis, and usually appear in the results of X-ray, B-ultrasound, CT and other examinations. It means that there is an "extra thing" in the examined part, which can cause the surrounding tissues to be compressed and displaced. Space-occupying lesions usually refer to tumors (benign or malignant), parasites, etc., and do not involve the cause of the disease.

Space-occupying lesions do not necessarily mean cancer.

In clinical work, experienced doctors can usually make a clearer diagnosis based on the patient's medical history. This term is only used when there is uncertainty. At this point, the doctor will ask the patient to provide a more detailed medical history, as well as refer for other examinations or do some special CT scans to further clarify.

Space-occupying lesions can be divided into malignant space-occupying lesions and benign space-occupying lesions according to their nature. Malignant space-occupying lesions mainly include cancer, sarcoma, etc., among which cancer is the most common. Sarcoma is a malignant tumor that originates from vascular endothelial cells. It is relatively rare, but generally does not metastasize everywhere, and the survival period is longer than that of cancer.

Benign space-occupying lesions can generally be divided into two types: cystic space-occupying lesions and solid space-occupying lesions. Cystic space-occupying lesions mainly include cysts, abscesses, etc., among which cysts are more common; solid space-occupying lesions mainly include hemangiomas, cell adenomas, focal nodular hyperplasia, focal fatty liver, inflammatory pseudotumors, tumor-like hyperplasia, etc., among which hemangiomas are the most common. After discovering a space-occupying lesion, the first thing to do is to make a qualitative diagnosis, that is, to determine the nature of the patient's space-occupying lesion, whether it is benign or malignant. Various imaging examinations can not only assist in qualitative diagnosis, but also perform positional diagnosis, that is, to further determine the location, size, number of space-occupying lesions and their relationship with surrounding tissues. The most commonly used positioning diagnosis methods are CT, MRI scanning, and B-ultrasound. When necessary, arterial angiography can be used to provide a basis for whether surgical treatment is possible.