malignancy

noun

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ma·lig·nan·cy | \ mə-ˈlig-nən(t)-sē

plural malignancies

Definition of malignancy

1 : the quality or state of being malignant

2a : exhibition (as by a tumor) of malignant qualities : virulence

b : a malignant tumor

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Examples of malignancy in a Sentence

the malignancy of the tumor The test revealed a malignancy in the patient's chest.

Recent Examples on the Web Unfortunately, the increasing substitution of hysterical mythmaking for news is a malignancy of our time. — Holman W. Jenkins, WSJ, "Last Chance for the 2016 Truth?," 13 Nov. 2020 Again, at his wife’s urging, Morris scheduled a visit with Dr. Dixie Melillo at The Rose, a breast cancer diagnostic center in Houston, and a mammogram and ultrasound suggested a malignancy. — Yvette Orozco, Houston Chronicle, "Survivor uses humor to spread message about male breast cancer," 8 Oct. 2020 The biopsy revealed that the tumor was a stage II malignancy. — Kai Mcgee, Marie Claire, "A Devastating Choice: Deciding Between a Lumpectomy or Mastectomy," 5 Oct. 2020 Metastatic disease—in which the malignancy has traveled beyond its primary site to other spots in the body—is responsible for nine out of every 10 cancer deaths. — Claudia Wallis, Scientific American, "Deadly Spread of Some Cancers May Be Driven by a Common Mouth Microbe," 14 Sep. 2020 The study found that high levels of methylmalonic acid, or MMA, boost a tumor’s malignancy — allowing cancer cells to breach new tissues, fight off chemotherapies, and survive. — Meghana Keshavan, STAT, "New research tabs a natural byproduct of metabolism as a potent trigger of cancer spread," 19 Aug. 2020 By this relatively simple act, the staff member had unraveled a bit of the malignancy, but the task of undoing malignant social psychology cannot rest only on direct caregivers. — Longreads, "On Vanishing," 14 Apr. 2020 This was no surprise to black people, but so many whites felt that Obama’s Presidency signalled the beginning of the end of that malignancy. — Bill Mckibben, The New Yorker, "How Public Opinion Changes for the Better," 17 June 2020 It’s a striking omission, because head and neck cancer, mostly cancer of the throat, is the most common malignancy caused by HPV, the human papilloma virus, in the U.S. — Matthew Herper, STAT, "FDA approves Gardasil 9, the HPV vaccine, to prevent head-and-neck cancer," 12 June 2020

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'malignancy.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.