Need help: Growth on my leg

Hi everyone, I’m hoping someone might be able to offer some perspective here. My mom found this little lump—it’s hard, a bit larger than a pea, and the skin turns red when you touch it. It’s started getting uncomfortable whenever she tries to put on her shoes. Her surgeon is pushing for an excision (because, let’s face it, that’s usually all surgeons 😁 want to hear), but her primary care physician—who, frankly, seems totally indifferent to her concerns—is saying she shouldn't touch it at all and that it's nothing to worry about. A few years back, my mom had surgery on her thyroid; it was riddled with cysts, so they ended up removing everything during a procedure in Washington, D.C. Back then, this same doctor insisted my mom was just imagining things, only for my mom to end up in surgery four days later after I practically dragged her to Washington, D.C. for a second opinion. I'm wondering what you all think. Since this doctor won't even write a referral for further testing (like a biopsy or something similar), does anyone know of a good private clinic or specialist we could visit? Also, if anyone knows which specific tests we should request, that would be great. I just want to get her some answers so she can stop worrying. Thanks in advance!

Grace Cruz87 said:Hey everyone, I’m hoping for some advice. My mom found this hard little lump—definitely bigger than a pea—that gets red when she touches it, and now it's making it painful for her to put on shoes. Her surgeon is pushing for an excision (because, let’s be honest, what else is a surgeon going to say 😁?), but her primary care doctor—who, unfortunately, couldn't care less about her patients—is insisting she leave it alone and that it’s nothing. Back when my mom had thyroid surgery ten years ago because it was riddled with cysts, they cleared everything out right there in Washington, D.C. At that time, this same GP told her she was just imagining things, only for my mom to end up in surgery four days later after I practically dragged her to Washington, D.C. for a specialist. I'm wondering what you all think, especially since this doctor won't even give her referrals for further testing (like a biopsy or whatever). Does anyone know a good private clinic or specific tests we should look into? I just want her to stop worrying. Thanks in advance!

Listen to the surgeon. That’s his job, and more importantly, the thing is causing her physical discomfort. It could be anything, but most likely it's just a lipoma—a benign fatty tumor. You don't need a needle biopsy for that. They just open it up, remove it, and then send it off for pathology to confirm whether it's actually malignant or benign.

Thanks so much for getting back to me so quickly. To be honest, she’s terrified of even touching it because a friend of hers had a similar growth removed from her arm, and she passed away less than three months later. They mentioned that these kinds of growths on the extremities can sometimes be linked to lung cancer... and her grandmother actually died from lung cancer. I know I probably sound a bit irrational, both my mom and I, and we're fully aware of how this sounds, but we're just really scared right now.