metastasis

[muh-tas-tuh-sis]

noun

plural

metastases 

1. Pathology.

   1. the transference of disease-producing organisms or of malignant or cancerous cells to other parts of the body by way of the blood or lymphatic vessels or membranous surfaces.

   2. the condition produced by this.

2. transformation.

3. Rhetoric.,  a rapid transition, as from one subject to another.

4. Physics.,  a change in position or orbit of an elementary particle.

metastasis

/ mɪˈtæstəsɪs, ˌmɛtəˈstætɪk /

noun

1. pathol the spreading of a disease, esp cancer cells, from one part of the body to another

2. a transformation or change, as in rhetoric, from one point to another

3. a rare word for metabolism

metastasis

1. A cancerous tumor formed by transmission of malignant cells from a primary cancer located elsewhere in the body.

Other Word Forms

• metastatic adjective
• metastatically adverb

Word History and Origins

Origin of metastasis¹

First recorded in 1580–90, metastasis is from the Greek word metástasis “a changing”; meta-, stasis

Word History and Origins

Origin of metastasis¹

C16: via Latin from Greek: transition

Example Sentences

He had head and neck metastatic cancer, and he ultimately succumbed to lung metastasis, according to CNN, which obtained a cremation approval summary report from the medical examiner’s office in Pinellas County, Florida.

From Los Angeles Times

This process is called metastasis and is the cause of the majority of deaths from cancer.

From BBC

"It shows just how well the GPS ensured that they would only work in the brain. The same strategy even worked to clear brain metastases of breast cancer."

From Science Daily

The outcome of interest was breast cancer metastasis or distant recurrence and today there is follow-up data for more than 20 years after initial diagnosis.

From Science Daily

The discovery improves the scientific understanding of cancer progression and anticancer immunity, and could yield new clinical tools for assessing and reducing metastasis risk.

From Science Daily

Related Words

• changeover 
• conversion 
• development 
• evolution 
• growth 
• passage 
• progress 
• progression 
• shift 
• transformation 
• upheaval