lymphoma

/lɪmˈfoʊmə/

Other forms: lymphomas

Lymphoma is a type of cancer that affects blood and lymph nodes. Lymphoma makes it hard for the body to fight off infection.

The term lymphoma adds the medical suffix -oma, "morbid growth or tumor," to lymph, from its Latin root lympha, "water" or "goddess of water." Lymph is the colorless, water-like fluid in our bodies that contains white blood cells, and the lymphatic system is the part of our immune system that carries lymph toward the heart.

Definitions of lymphoma

1. noun

   a neoplasm of lymph tissue that is usually malignant; one of the four major types of cancer
   types:

   Hodgkin's disease

   a malignant disorder in which there is progressive (but painless) enlargement of lymph tissue followed by enlargement of the spleen and liver

   type of:

   cancer, malignant neoplastic disease

   any malignant growth or tumor caused by abnormal and uncontrolled cell division; it may spread to other parts of the body through the lymphatic system or the blood stream