Definition of "cachexia" [ca•chex•i•a]

• Weight loss, wasting of muscle, loss of appetite, and general debility that can occur during a chronic disease. (noun)

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.

• "The syndrome called cachexia is responsible for between one-fifth and one-third of all cancer deaths."
• "About half of all cancer patients eventually suffer serious weight loss and malnutrition, a wasting syndrome called cachexia where they don't just lose excess fat but vital muscle."
• "I know cigarettes cause cancer, but cancer causes cachexia, which is massive weight loss and appetite loss."