melanoma

mel·a·no·ma

noun \ˌmel-ə-ˈnō-mə\

plural mel·a·no·mas also mel·a·no·ma·ta \-mət-ə\

Definition of MELANOMA

1

: a benign or malignant skin tumor containing dark pigment

2

: a tumor of high malignancy that starts in melanocytes of normal skin or moles and metastasizes rapidly and widely—called also malignant melanoma, melanocarcinoma, melanoepithelioma, melanosarcoma