nitrogen mustard

American  

noun

Chemistry.

1. any of the class of poisonous, blistering compounds, as C 5 H 1 1 Cl 2 N, analogous in composition to mustard gas but containing nitrogen instead of sulfur: used in the treatment of cancer and similar diseases; mechlorethamine.

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nitrogen mustard British  

noun

1. any of a class of organic compounds resembling mustard gas in their molecular structure. General formula: RN(CH 2 CH 2 Cl) 2 , where R is an organic group: important in the treatment of cancer

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Etymology

Origin of nitrogen mustard

First recorded in 1945–50

Example Sentences

The first infusions of nitrogen mustard derivatives in the 1940s produced partial remissions in lymphoma patients.

From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 24, 2026

In his earlier experiments, Alexander noted that nitrogen mustard exposure spurred a dramatic collapse of white blood cells in laboratory mice.

From New York Times • Aug. 28, 2020

By then we’ve learned that neither the Bari disaster nor the tissue samples Alexander collected pioneered the study of nitrogen mustard in chemotherapy; medical researchers were already experimenting with the compound.

From New York Times • Aug. 28, 2020

Clarkson answered that he and his colleagues had decided to swap the nitrogen mustard in DeVita’s formula for a drug called thiotepa.

From The New Yorker • Dec. 14, 2015

They isolate the blood flow through a cancerous area with tourniquets, divert it through a heart-lung machine, lace it with some alkylating agent such as nitrogen mustard.

From Time Magazine Archive