Neoplasia vs Hamartoma

[Untraditional]

Can someone explain the conceptual difference to me between neoplasia and hamartoma? Hamartoma are benign and arises from disordered growth of local tissue cells. Neoplasia can sometimes be benign and can originate from disordered growth of local tissue cells.

So, can someone help me get a grasp on the semantics here? When is a mass a Hamartoma? When is it a neoplasm?

Bonus if you can explain like I'm five so that I'll remember it longer. Thanks

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[armybound]

The big difference has to do with growth rate.

A hamartoma is usually present at birth, IIRC. Think of it as completely normal, benign tissue that just grew in an abnormal configuration. It replicates completely normally with all of the normal checks and balances, it's just not growing out into completely functional, useful, normal tissue. It remembers who it is, it just forgets where it's supposed to go to be normal.

A neoplasm arises from normal tissue, but tissue that has lost its normal checks on growth. Its only real goal is to replicate as fast as it can, regardless of how much local or distant tissue is has to invade or destroy to grow. It loses its organization (at higher grades) -- sort of forgets who it is and what it's supposed to do.

Help at all? I'm sorta tipsy and may not be making any sense.

 

[projectlogic]

Hamartoma consists of NORMAL mature cells that are simply disorganized in terms of their distribution. There is nothing wrong with cell cycle regulation.

Neoplasias, on the other hand, consist of ABNORMAL cells because they have uncontrolled or unregulated growth.