When doctors use the term tumor they are talking generically and not about the size of the lesion. A mass usually refers to a lump which is at least 20 mm (0.787 inches) in diameter at its widest point, while a nodule is less than 20 mm at its widest point.
But how big a spiral can you get? Our Milky Way galaxy is pretty beefy, one of the bigger spiral galaxies in the Universe. Itâs roughly 100,000 light-years across, or a quintillion kilometers. Thatâs a lot of kilometers. Donât go bragging to your friends just yet though.
The Milky Way is a barred spiral galaxy, about 100,000 light-years across. If you could look down on it from the top, you would see a central bulge surrounded by four large spiral arms that wrap around it. Spiral galaxies make up about two-third of the galaxies in the universe. [Infographic: Our Milky Way Galaxy: A Traveler's Guide] Unlike a regular spiral, a barred spiral contains a bar across its center region, and has two major arms. The Milky Way also contains two significant minor arms, as well as two smaller spurs.