17yoa son had MRI for shoulder pain,found to have severe busitis and showed a growth in the arm bone? What now

The "growth" is located in the upper part of arm bone, not at the joint and is "sizeable". The doctor said that he wants to re-MRI in about 6 months and it is likely benign. Son is very healthy. Should I get a second opinion?

Answers:
if you are very concerned, you should find another doctor to biopsy the growth. take all of your MRI and test results to the new doctor so you dont have to repeat the tests (they are very expensive) and ask him to biopsy it because you are concerned it could be cancerous. since your son is 17 and you are his guardian still, you can request these things. otherwise just wait 6 months for another MRI if he feels sure it is benign. could be that the growth is what is causing the bursitis (which is very painful) and removing the growth may relive some of the pain. so a second opinion couldnt hurt.

yup
What? Wait for 6 months to see if it's benign? Get a second opinion IMMEDIATELY and a 3rd, if necessary! I had a bump on my neck a few years back that the Doctor squeezed and said, Ah, you're just getting older.A couple of years later, a 2nd bump appeared and I went to another Doctor who sent me to a 3rd for a biopsy and guess what..both bumps were cancerous and had spread! Had to have to major operations and my entire thyroid removed which resulted in more troubles..Get it done NOW!
First if your son hasn't had a plain xray, he should get one. In reality, a plain film can be more helpful than an MRI for bone lesions. Do you have the actual MRI report and the lesions description? If you want a second opinion then you can get a copy of the MRI and report and xray for another radiologist's opinion. I would do that before even considering a bone biopsy.
It is likely osteochondroma, a benign bone lesion that forms most commonly near the growth plates of long bones. If it is only the bursitis causing pain and not the actual lesion, waiting 6-months for the MRI should be OK. It is likely a follow up to make sure it hasn't grown. They can tell from the MRI whether there is a concern for cancer and so if the doctor isn't currently concerned, I wouldn't be.

If you are concerned, a second opinion couldn't hurt. I have had an osteochondroma for approximately 10 years without concern. It is very rare for it to convert to cancer (<1%) and the benign form is actually quite common.

Best of luck!
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