oncology
Americannoun
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the branch of medical science dealing with tumors, including the origin, development, diagnosis, and treatment of malignant neoplasms.
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the study of cancer.
noun
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of oncology
Explanation
Oncology is the branch of medicine that deals with tumors and cancer. A doctor who practices oncology is called an oncologist. You probably think of cancer treatment as a modern practice, but the word oncology has its roots in ancient Greek. The prefix onkos means "mass or bulk” (and eventually evolved into the modern Latin onco — meaning tumor) and the suffix logy means “study of.” In theory, the word means “the study of tumors.” More often, though, you will hear oncology in relation to treatment and practical medicine, as opposed to just study or research.
Vocabulary lists containing oncology
The Fault in Our Stars
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National Nurses Week: Medical Branches and Conditions
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This Week In Culture: October 17–23, 2020
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
The findings are published in the journal BMJ Oncology.
From BBC • Apr. 28, 2026
This is a new FDA office bringing together experts from across the agency to collaborate, much as the Oncology Center of Excellence does for cancer.
From The Wall Street Journal • Feb. 23, 2026
The research, publishedin the leading cancer journal Annals of Oncology, goes beyond broad comparisons to show which specific policy changes or system improvements could have the greatest impact on cancer survival in each nation.
From Science Daily • Jan. 17, 2026
Pazdur is well-known to biotech investors as the creator and director of the FDA’s Oncology Center of Excellence, an office within the FDA that has worked to speed cancer drug approvals.
From Barron's • Nov. 12, 2025
Christoph Lengauer is Global Head of Oncology Drug Discovery at sanofi-aventis, one of the biggest pharmaceutical companies in the world.
From "The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks" by Rebecca Skloot
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
