porphyria

American  

[pawr-feer-ee-uh, -fahy-ree-uh] / pɔrˈfɪər i ə, -ˈfaɪ ri ə /

noun

Pathology.

1. a defect of blood pigment metabolism in which porphyrins are produced in excess, are present in the blood, and are found in the urine.

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porphyria British  

/ pɔːˈfɪrɪə /

noun

1. a hereditary disease of body metabolism, producing abdominal pain, mental confusion, etc

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Etymology

Origin of porphyria

First recorded in 1920–25; porphyr(in) + -ia

Example Sentences

For many years, it was believed the king suffered from acute porphyria, a genetic disorder that can affect the nervous system.

From Los Angeles Times • May 6, 2023

God knows, there were other places he could have gone – claiming to have caught porphyria from a sofa once owned by George III, for instance, or to have been chemically castrated in ’Nam.

From The Guardian • Nov. 22, 2019

The drug is an siRNA developed by Alnylam for acute hepatic porphyria, another inherited liver disease.

From Nature • Oct. 15, 2019

She also found out that she has a rare gene mutation that causes a disease called variegate porphyria, which can cause blistering skin lesions and acute attacks that cause severe abdominal pain.

From Washington Post • Jun. 26, 2017

Present day medical scholars now believe that this illness was perhaps porphyria or some type of metabolic illness, which could now be treated and controlled by diet and medication.

From The Road to Independence: Virginia 1763-1783 by Virginia. History, Government, and Geography Service