CANCER


Meaning of CANCER in English

can ‧ cer S2 W2 /ˈkænsə $ -ər/ BrE AmE noun

[ Date: 1600-1700 ; Language: Latin ; Origin: 'crab, cancer' ]

1 . [uncountable and countable] a very serious disease in which cells in one part of the body start to grow in a way that is not normal ⇨ tumour :

A lot of cancers can now be treated successfully.

lung/breast/stomach etc cancer

Smoking causes lung cancer.

She was told last year that she had cancer.

He died of cancer last month.

cancer of

cancer of the womb

a new treatment which effectively kills cancer cells

2 . [countable] an evil influence that affects a lot of people and is difficult to stop:

Drug abuse is the cancer of our society.

—cancerous adjective :

a cancerous growth

cancerous cells

Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English.      Longman - Словарь современного английского языка.