Our concerns are the same. The surgical removal of the lymph nodes draining a particular organ. The term is usually reserved for complete removal of the group of nodes. I can offer no better way of thinking of malignancy as we view it in medical terms. Mass A physical lump of cells.
All physical things have a size.
Sometimes we are feeling a lump or nodule with our hands, sometimes we are looking at something with a type of X-Ray. In oncologic discussion, either may be referred as a mass. Usually we are concerned about the presence of, it s size, or demonstation of local invasion. M elanocyte cells derived from the neural crest that are in the skin and produce the protein pigment, melanin. Melanin is responsible for skin color.