cancer
n. C / Un. a serious disease where cells in the body grow in a way that is not normal. It can spread to different parts of the body and make people very sick.
n. a disease caused by an uncontrolled division of abnormal cells in a part of the body. Often used to describe a malignant growth or tumor that can invade surrounding tissues.
Early testing can help doctors find and treat cancer.
The hospital is famous for its research into new ways to treat various types of lung cancer.
While some forms of the disease are highly aggressive, medical advancements have significantly improved the survival rates for many patients diagnosed with early-stage cancer.
Learned borrowing from Latin cancer (“crab”), calque of Ancient Greek Καρκίνος (Karkínos, “crab”), calque of Akkadian 𒀀𒇻𒌅 (allutu, “crab”), from Sumerian 𒀯𒀠𒈜 (ᵐᵘˡAL.LUL, “crab; name of constellation”).
Uncountable when referring to the disease in general; countable when referring to specific types or instances of the disease.