It's not a toomah...they just call it a tumor

This whole epidermoid cyst/tumor thing can be quite confusing to people who have never heard of epidermoid cysts. NOW I (think) understand that an epidermoid tumor is an epidermoid cyst that occurs in the brain and that calling it a tumor distinguishes it from epidermoid cysts that occur in other areas of the body. Anyhow it makes explaining what I have to people kind of tricky because if I use the term tumor people usually think cancer so I need to clarify that it is not cancer and is benign. In contrast, if I use the word cyst people tend to think that it is something that is not so serious when if fact it is because epidermoid cysts are sticky and therefore quite difficult to remove....not to mention that I have something the size of a golfball in my brain (e.g. the control center of the body).