A polyp is a small growth that develops inside the tissues of different organs, such as the colon. Adenomatous polyps, or adenomas, ...WhattoknowaboutadenomasMedicallyreviewedbySaurabhSethi,M.D.,MPH—WrittenbyAdamRowdenonMarch29,2021DefinitionCausesandrisksSymptomsDiagnosisTreatmentCancerriskContactingadoctorSummaryApolypisasmallgrowththatdevelopsinsidethetissuesofdifferentorgans,suchasthecolon.Adenomatouspolyps,oradenomas,areusuallyharmless.However,insomecases,theymaybeprecancerous.Ifadoctordoesnotremovethem,theymaygrowanddevelopintocancer.Polypsarecommoninolderadults,withcolorectalpolypsoccurringin30%ofadultsovertheageof50yearsintheUnitedStates.Differenttypesofcolonpolypscanincludeadenomasandhyperplasticpolyps.Whilemostadenomasareharmless,somecandevelopintocancer.Forthisreason,somepeoplemayrefertoadenomasasaprecancerouscondition.Almostallcolorectalcancerisduetopolyps.Therefore,ifapersonhasprecancerouspolyps,adoctorwilloftenremovethembeforecancercandevelop.Inthisarticle,wewilldiscusswhatadenomasare,howadoctormaydiagnosethem,andwhattreatmentoptionsareavailable.AdenomatouspolypsShareonPinterestPhotoeditingbyStephenKelly;DavidALitman/ShutterstockAdenomatouspolyps,oftenknownasadenomas,areatypeofpolypsthatcanturnintocancer.Adenomasmayforminthemucousmembraneofthelininginthelargeintestine,makingthemcolonpolyps.Anothertypeofadenomaisgastricpolyps,whichformintheliningofthestomach.Adenomasoftenappearinseveralgrowthpatterns.Thetwomostcommonpatternsaretubularandvillous.Tubularadenomastendtobesmallinsizeandgrowinatubularshape.Theyareusuallylessthanhalfaninchlong.Thecharacteristicfeatureofvillousadenomasisfinger-orleaf-likeprojectionscomingoutoftheadenoma.Someadenomasmaydevelopamixtureofbothvillousandtubulargrowthpatterns.Expertsrefertotheseastubulovillousadenomas.Adenomaswithavillousgrowthpatternaremorelikelytohavecancersgrowinsidethem.Cancerisalsomorelikelytodevelopinlargeradenomas.CausesandriskfactorsofadenomasAnyonecandevelopadenomatouspolyps.However,therearesomefactorsthatin