Definition of "precancerous" [precancerous]

• Of, relating to, or being a condition that typically precedes or develops into a cancer: a precancerous growth. (adjective)

American Heritage(R) Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright (c) 2011 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

• "| while 'precancerous' occurred twice, both in the index."
• "Know Your ABCDE's Ronald Moy, a Beverly Hills, Calif., dermatologist and president of the American Academy of Dermatology, says skin cancers and precancerous conditions are often caught when patients come in for cosmetic procedures."
• "Leukoplakia, a precancerous condition characterized by white patches in the mouth, has been linked directly to oral use of tobacco; it occurs in more than half of all users in the first three years of use."