myxoma

noun

myx·​o·​ma mik-ˈsō-mə 

plural myxomas also myxomata mik-ˈsō-mə-tə 

: a soft tumor made up of gelatinous connective tissue like that of the umbilical cord

myxomatous

mik-ˈsō-mə-təs 

adjective

Examples of myxoma in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Over time, genome analyses of newer strains have not only identified several mutations from the original South American myxoma viral strain but also the addition of entirely new gene sequences. —William A. Haseltine, Forbes, 21 June 2022

The myxoma-like virus detected in these hares had gained approximately 2,800 new base pairs, compared to a South American rabbitpox strain. —William A. Haseltine, Forbes, 21 June 2022

Subsequent findings from this experiment confirmed that the replication of the myxoma-like virus within hare cells depended on the expression of M159 proteins. —William A. Haseltine, Forbes, 6 June 2022

For example, within a seven-year period, a myxoma strain that once had a 90% fatality rate in rabbits living in Lake Urana only killed 26% of rabbits in the same area. —William A. Haseltine, Forbes, 1 June 2022

The myxoma virus was introduced to Ireland that same summer. —Paul Muldoon, The New Yorker, 4 Oct. 2021

Grant McFadden has spent over two decades studying the myxoma virus. —Amanda Morris, azcentral, 10 May 2020

An atrial myxoma is a rare non-cancerous tumor that grows on the heart and, if caught, can be easily removed. —Jenny Mollen, Marie Claire, 17 July 2017

An atrial myxoma is a rare non-cancerous tumor that grows on the heart and, if caught, can be easily removed. —Jenny Mollen, Marie Claire, 17 July 2017

Word History

Etymology

borrowed from New Latin, from Greek mýxa "nasal discharge, slime" + New Latin -oma -oma — more at myxo-

Note: Term introduced by Rudolf virchow in "Ein Fall von bösartigen, zum Theil in der Form des Neuroms auftretenden Fettgeschwülsten," Archiv für pathologische Anatomie und Physiologie und für klinische Medicin, Band 11 (1857), p. 287: "… im Anfange der Bildung konnte man sie als Schleimgeschwulst (Tumor mucosus, Myxoma) bezeichen." ("… in the early stages of formation one could designate it as a mucous tumor (tumor mucosus, myxoma).") Later in the same paper he uses the vernacular form Myxom.

First Known Use

1870, in the meaning defined above

Medical Definition

myxoma

noun

myx·​o·​ma mik-ˈsō-mə 

plural myxomas also myxomata -mət-ə 

: a soft tumor made up of gelatinous connective tissue resembling that found in the umbilical cord

myxomatous

-mət-əs 

adjective