fluorouracil

American  

[floor-uh-yoor-uh-sil, flawr-, flohr-] / ˌflʊər əˈyʊər ə sɪl, ˌflɔr-, ˌfloʊr- /

noun

Pharmacology.

1. a pyrimidine analog, C 4 H 3 FN 2 O 2 , used in the treatment of certain cancers.

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Etymology

Origin of fluorouracil

fluoro- + uracil

Example Sentences

But a month ago, a national shortage of chemotherapy drugs led MultiCare to cut the amount Lind receives of a key medication, fluorouracil, by roughly 20%.

From Seattle Times • Jun. 4, 2023

At the same time, Irwin said, fluorouracil, also known as 5FU, can be used to cure rectal and colon cancers, among others.

From Seattle Times • Jun. 4, 2023

The 16 drugs that Pfizer and Cipla will sell have unfamiliar names like vinblastine, bleomycin and fluorouracil.

From New York Times • Oct. 7, 2017

Many of the drugs are generic, sterile injectable medications, such as cytarabine, a key treatment forleukemia, or fluorouracil, for colon and other cancers.

From Chicago Tribune • Mar. 22, 2012

For example, only 20% of people with cancer of the colon or rectum respond to the drug fluorouracil; the other 80% suffer needlessly from the drug's toxic effects.

From Time Magazine Archive