We’ve all seen players fall prey to nasty on-court injuries. Serena Williams, although, hardly ever endured testing times as such, has unfortunately landed in medical trouble. The WTA star was diagnosed with a lump after undergoing an MRI in May. With fans worried, the American sensation aired a crucial announcement surrounding her branchial cleft cyst diagnosis. Don’t fret, it does seem like a ‘scientific mouthful’. However, its alarming growth inside her body prompts the question, what is it?
Classified as a congenital birth defect, more precisely as a set of underlying tissues in a neck grows unconventionally. While the visually seen ‘lump-like’ deformity is usually corrected in children, in some cases the defect’s underwhelming growth goes undetected. As per medical research, the cyst is benign – meaning it bores no cancerous properties. However, in extreme cases, the deformity might pose a critical threat if it contains malignant tissue. The good news is, it is curable by minor surgery.
Although we don’t know much about Serena’s case yet, such cysts are generally surgically removable. It is generally advised by doctors to do so after the patient has received their initial antibiotic treatment to prevent injection.
Serena Williams’ Health Scare: What is Branchial Cyst and Is it Cancerous? Everything You Need to Know
