Malignancy
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Malignancy (from Latin male "badly" + -gnus "born") is the tendency of a medical condition, especially tumors, to become progressively worse and to potentially result in death. Malignancy in cancers is characterized by anaplasia, invasiveness, and metastasis.[1]
Malignancy is most familiar as a characterization of cancer. A malignant tumor contrasts with a non-cancerous benign tumor in that a malignancy is not self-limited in its growth, is capable of invading into adjacent tissues, and may be capable of spreading to distant tissues. A benign tumor has none of those properties.
Uses of "malignant" in oncology:
- Malignancy, malignant neoplasm, and malignant tumor are synonymous with cancer
- Malignant ascites
- Malignant transformation
Non-oncologic disorders referred to as "malignant":
- Malignant hypertension
- Malignant hyperthermia
- Malignant otitis externa
- Malignant tertian malaria (Malaria caused specifically by Plasmodium falciparum)
- Neuroleptic malignant syndrome
See also
 |
Look up malignancy in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. |
- Premalignant
References
- ↑ Wilkins, E. M. 2009. clinical practice of the dental hygienist tenth edition. lippincott williams and wilkins, a walters kluwer business. Philadelphia, PA.
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution/Share Alike; additional terms may apply for the media files.