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cancer cell

cancer cell

31 2.5
An abnormal body cell that divides without control and forms a tumor
  • noun
  • /ˈkænsər sɛl/
  • Specialized
translation icon : célula cancerosa
  • Several reports have shown the contribution of curcumin in the sensitization of cancer cells to chemotherapy drugs.
  • colorectal cancer cells
  • breast cancer cells
  • prostate cancer cells

You can explain why some cancer cells respond differently to our treatments.

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Examples

  • You're damaging them just enough so the apoptosis kicks in and the cancer cell self destructs.

  • Radiotherapy can be used to destroy the cancer cells and cause the tumor to shrink.

    Academic text (2011)
  • And as it turns out, some cancer cells are not able to burn both.

  • And we know that cancer cells feed off of sugar.

  • Now those big white cells are attacking the cancer cells.

  • But at the molecular level, cancer cells look and behave quite differently from healthy cells.

    Academic text (2003)
  • And we've saved millions of lives by killing cancer cells in a more selective way.

  • Even when stained, the cancer cells have only subtle visible differences from normal cells.

    Academic text (2008)
  • In laboratory tests, the devices have been able to target ovarian cancer cells and inject them with therapeutic chemicals.

    Academic text (2010)
  • Radiotherapy can be used to destroy cancer cells and cause the tumor to shrink.

Synonyms

neoplastic cell
vscancer cell
  • Specialized
7.4

A cell that grows abnormally and becomes part of a tumor

is specifically malignant and forms the basis of uncontrolled tumour growth

How Abnormal

metastatic tumor
  • Specialized
1 5.1
cancer cell
  • Specialized
31 2.5
precancerous
  • Specialized
2 5.8
atypia
  • Specialized
1 9.9

Surface Forms

cancer cell singular
cancer cells plural

Morphology

cancer + cell

The term 'cancer cell' is directly composed from 'cancer' (a disease of uncontrolled cell division) and 'cell' (a microscopic living unit), so a learner who knows both words can infer it is a cell affected by cancer that divides uncontrollably. This noun–noun compounding is a common, cross-linguistic compositional pattern and does not involve idiomatic or metaphorical shift, making the meaning predictable to B1 learners.

Etymology

Cancer cell comes from two words: cancer (an old word from when people thought a spreading lump looked like a crab) and cell (a tiny part of the body). The image of a small part acting like a 'crab' that keeps growing helps explain why cancer cell means 'a cell that divides out of control'.