tumor
noun
ˈtyü- \
Definition of tumor
1
: an abnormal benign or malignant new growth of tissue that possesses no physiological function and arises from uncontrolled usually rapid cellular proliferation
— called also
neoplasm
2 : a swollen or distended part … houses that bulged with the tumors and warts of … ornamental architecture … —W. A. White
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Other words from tumor
ˈtyü-
\
adjective
ˈtyü-
\
adjective
Examples of tumor in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
For their new study, Shah and his colleagues first removed tumor cells from mice. — Sharon Begley, STAT, "CRISPR makes cancer cells turncoats that attack their tumor, mouse study finds," 11 July 2018 The virus is designed to target the tumor cells and trigger a response by the immune system. — Washington Post, BostonGlobe.com, "Polio virus treatment increased survival in patients with deadly brain tumors, study shows," 26 June 2018 The virus is designed to target the tumor cells and trigger a response by the immune system. — Laurie Mcginley, Washington Post, "Polio virus treatment increased survival in patients with deadly brain tumors, study shows," 26 June 2018 One principle behind it is to kill fast-growing cells, which include tumor cells but also the healthy tissue lining the gut and mouth and hair follicle. — Maggie Fox /, NBC News, "Is chemo obsolete? Not by a long shot, cancer experts say," 24 June 2018 That means spotting something like a tumor cell would hinge on finding specific molecular markers, which can vary among cells and may be difficult to identify because they are not always known. — Diana Kwon, Scientific American, "“Ghost” Cytometry May Improve Cancer Detection, Enable New Experiments," 14 June 2018 Another drug, Gleevec, worked only if the tumor cells had a mutant gene called BCR-ABL, or a mutation in a gene called c-kit. — Siddhartha Mukherjee, New York Times, "The Search for Cancer Treatment Beyond Mutant-Hunting," 13 June 2018 The virus then infects the tumor cells selectively. — Nancy Dahlberg, miamiherald, "Brain cancer treatments showing promise with targeted therapies. 'Very exciting stuff.' | Miami Herald," 25 May 2018 The nanoparticles showed the different types of tumor cells in every sample, how the immune system was reacting, and whether there were side effects. — Angela Chen, The Verge, "How graphene and gold could help us test drugs and monitor cancer," 18 May 2018These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'tumor.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
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More Definitions for tumor
tumor
noun
English Language Learners Definition of tumor
: a mass of tissue found in or on the body that is made up of abnormal cells
See the full definition for tumor in the English Language Learners Dictionary
tumor
noun
ˈtyü- \
Kids Definition of tumor
: an abnormal growth of body tissue
tumor
noun
\
Medical Definition of tumor
: an abnormal benign or malignant new growth of tissue that possesses no physiological function and arises from uncontrolled usually rapid cellular proliferation — see cancer sense 1, carcinoma, sarcoma
Other words from tumor
\
adjective
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