alimentary tract smear

8.6

A sample of cells taken from part of the digestive tract to check for diseases like cancer

noun

Specialized

: frotis del tracto alimentario

The doctor recommended an alimentary tract smear to check for abnormal cells in the esophagus.

Examples

A biopsy and an alimentary tract smear were both performed to aid in the diagnosis.
Did you receive the results of your alimentary tract smear?
Detection of early cancer is possible through regular alimentary tract smear screenings.
The doctor ordered an alimentary tract smear for further testing.
The doctor recommended an alimentary tract smear to check for any signs of disease in the digestive system.
Regular alimentary tract smear tests can help detect precancerous changes in the lining of the stomach.
After the alimentary tract smear, the lab confirmed whether there were any malignant cells present.

Synonyms

cytologic smear

vsalimentary tract smear

Specialized

6.1

A small sample of cells spread thin on a glass slide to look at under a microscope

is a specialized sample taken from the digestive tract to detect disease like cancer

Surface Forms

alimentary tract smear singular

alimentary tract smears plural

Morphology

alimentary + tract + smear

The phrase is compositionally built from 'alimentary' (relating to the digestive/nutritional system) + 'tract' (a bodily passage) + 'smear' (a specimen spread on a slide), so a learner who knows those words can infer it is a sample taken from the alimentary tract. Although it's technical medical vocabulary, the meaning follows straightforward noun-noun composition and is therefore predictable from the constituents.

Etymology

Alimentary tract smear comes from medical practice: doctors take a thin smear, a small sample spread on a glass slide, from the body's alimentary tract, the tube that carries food, to look at cells. So, it means 'a lab sample from the food tube used to check for disease'.