What defines the difference between benign and malignant tumors? cells in a malignant tumor do not respond to density-dependent inhibition signals while cells in a benign tumor stop proliferating when they reach appropriate density. cells in a malignant tumor do not need to replicate their dna before division while cells in a benign tumor must. cells in a malignant tumor are unable to respond to any extracellular signals while cells in a benign tumor can still respond to some signaling cells in a malignant tumor can survive and proliferate at another site in the body while cells in a benign tumor cannot