Pneumonectomies

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. A surgical procedure that involves the removal of a lung or part of a lung to treat serious respiratory conditions
2. The act of excising a lung or a section of it, typically performed to address lung diseases such as cancer
3. A medical operation that entails the complete or partial resection of lung tissue, often due to significant health issues

Etymology: "Pneumonectomies" is the plural of "pneumonectomy," a surgical term built in English from two Greek elements. The first, "pneumono-," comes from Ancient Greek "pneumōn," meaning lung, which is itself related to "pneuma," breath or wind, and to "pneō," to breathe. The second, "-ectomy," comes from Ancient Greek "ektomē," a cutting out, formed from "ek," out, and "temnein," to cut. The Greek roots were not combined in antiquity. The word is a modern coinage, assembled from classical parts in the way that many medical terms were in the 19th and 20th centuries, when surgeons needed precise names for new procedures. Its suffix follows the pattern of older surgical terms such as "appendectomy," which likewise name the removal of a body part.

Synonyms: lung surgeries, operations