Mass effect
Read Your Scan Editorial Team·Last updated
Written from published radiology references and reviewed for plain language. Not written or signed by a physician, and not a diagnosis. How we write these pages →
In plain language
Something is taking up room and pushing its neighbours out of the way. The phrase describes the pressure, not the cause — a bleed, a swelling or a tumour can all produce it.
Where you’ll see this
Brain and abdominal reports especially, in both the findings and the impression.
Questions worth asking your doctor
- In plain terms, how big or how serious is what you are describing?
- Does this description point to one likely cause, or several?
- Does anything here explain the symptoms I came in with?
How a finding is described
Where this word comes up
See this word on your own scan
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Read Your Scan is informational only — not a medical diagnosis, and not a substitute for a licensed radiologist or your doctor. If you have urgent symptoms, seek care.