metastasize

verb

me·​tas·​ta·​size mə-ˈta-stə-ˌsīz 

metastasized; metastasizing

intransitive verb

: to spread or grow by or as if by metastasis

died of lung cancer which had metastasized throughout his body

—G. P. Elliott

Examples of metastasize in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Obama ended up funding and arming the Syrian opposition so feebly it was slaughtered and – when its extremists joined up with radicals from Iraq’s long-running insurgency against the US occupation – metastasized into ISIS. —Nick Paton Walsh, CNN, 7 Dec. 2024

Carr was diagnosed with stage 4 small cell lung carcinoma on May 7, 2022 when doctors found multiple tumors had metastasized throughout her body, according to her GoFundMe page. —Anthony Robledo, USA TODAY, 15 Oct. 2024

Now, the conflict is threatening to metastasize into a multifront war and leave a lasting scar on Biden’s presidential legacy. —Aamer Madhani, Los Angeles Times, 24 Sep. 2024

The result is that patients with a moderate-sized main tumor and cancer that has metastasized to just a few other sites can completely avoid surgery, with their cancer treated after just five or fewer radiation treatments. —Linda Carroll, TIME, 5 Sep. 2024

Word History

First Known Use

1907, in the meaning defined above

Kids Definition

metastasize

verb

me·​tas·​ta·​size mə-ˈtas-tə-ˌsīz 

: to spread or grow by or as if by metastasis

Medical Definition

metastasize

intransitive verb

me·​tas·​ta·​size

variants also British metastasise

mə-ˈtas-tə-ˌsīz 

metastasized also British metastasised; metastasizing also British metastasising

: to spread by metastasis

… all ten were primary brain cancers; that is, they had originated in the brain, and not metastasized there from elsewhere in the body.

—Paul Brodeur, The New Yorker

metastasization noun

also British metastasisation

mə-ˌtas-tə-sə-ˈzā-shən