Oncotomies

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. Surgical procedures that involve the removal of tumors or cancerous tissues from the body
2. operations aimed specifically at excising malignant growths while preserving healthy surrounding structures
3. interventions focused on addressing cancerous lesions through resection for treatment purposes

Etymology: "Oncotomies" is the plural of "oncotomy," a noun meaning surgical removal of a cancer. The plural form simply reflects that the surgeries are counted individually, as in a patient who has undergone several such operations. The word is built from two Greek-derived elements. The first, "onco-," comes from Greek "onkos," meaning "mass" or "swelling," and is the combining form used in medical terms relating to tumours. The second, "-tomy," comes from Greek "tomē," meaning "a cutting," and appears in many surgical words such as "appendectomy" and "lobotomy," where it signals an operation that cuts into or removes something. Put together, the term literally describes cutting out a tumour.