metastatic

[met-uh-stat-ik]

adjective

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

   These blood vessels supply the tumor with nutrients and facilitate its metastatic spread.

Other Word Forms

• metastatically adverb

Word History and Origins

Origin of metastatic¹

First recorded in 1760–70; metasta(sis) ( def. ) + -tic ( def. )

Example Sentences

A few months ago, Martinez was diagnosed with stage 4 metastatic cancer — a byproduct of a five-year fight with uveal melanoma.

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Mr. Adams, 68, disclosed this spring that he has metastatic prostate cancer.

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To find out, the research team analyzed existing data from patients with Stage 3 and 4 non-small cell lung cancer and metastatic melanoma treated at MD Anderson from 2019 to 2023.

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Of the metastatic melanoma patients, 43 received a vaccine within 100 days of initiating immunotherapy, while 167 patients did not receive a vaccine.

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Her cause of death was recorded as metastatic breast cancer.

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