{
    "term": "cancer",
    "partOfSpeech": "noun",
    "ox3000": true,
    "cefr": "b2",
    "definitions": [
        {
            "senseNumber": 1,
            "definition": "a serious disease in which growths of cells, also called cancers, form in the body and kill normal body cells. The disease often causes death.",
            "sensetop": "cancer of something",
            "labels": "(British English)(informal)(British English)(North American English)(British English)(British English)(British English)(British English)(North American English)(British English)(North American English)(British English)(British English)(British English)(North American English)(British English)(British English)",
            "cefr": "b2",
            "ox3000": true,
            "examples": [
                {
                    "text": "**breast/lung cancer**"
                },
                {
                    "text": "Most **skin cancers** are completely curable."
                },
                {
                    "text": "cancer of the colon/cervix",
                    "contextForm": "cancer of something"
                },
                {
                    "text": "The **cancer has spread** to his stomach."
                },
                {
                    "text": "Smokers face an increased risk of **developing** lung **cancer**."
                },
                {
                    "text": "to detect/diagnose/treat/cure cancer"
                },
                {
                    "text": "The drug can lower the **risk of** breast **cancer**."
                },
                {
                    "text": "**cancer patients/survivors**"
                },
                {
                    "text": "**cancer research**"
                },
                {
                    "text": "cancer screening/treatment/prevention/risk"
                },
                {
                    "text": "Childhood cancers have a very good survival rate."
                },
                {
                    "text": "He died after an 18-month battle against cancer."
                },
                {
                    "text": "Most of the women employees have now been screened for breast cancer."
                },
                {
                    "text": "Prostate cancer deaths fell after screening was introduced."
                },
                {
                    "text": "The cancer risk among smokers was found to be higher."
                }
            ],
            "topics": ["Health problems"],
            "collocations": {
                "adjective": ["breast", "cervical", "colon"],
                "verb + cancer": ["have", "suffer from", "contract"],
                "cancer + verb": ["spread", "occur", "recur"],
                "cancer + noun": ["cell", "patient", "sufferer"],
                "phrases": [
                    "a battle against cancer",
                    "a struggle against cancer",
                    "cancer of the cervix"
                ]
            }
        },
        {
            "senseNumber": 2,
            "definition": "an evil or dangerous thing that spreads quickly",
            "labels": "(literary)",
            "cefr": "c2",
            "examples": [
                {
                    "text": "Violence is a cancer in our society."
                }
            ],
            "topics": ["Danger"]
        }
    ],
    "pronunciations": {
        "uk": [
            {
                "pronunciation": "/ˈkænsə(r)/",
                "audio": "ca/cancer/cancer__gb_2.mp3"
            }
        ],
        "us": [
            {
                "pronunciation": "/ˈkænsər/",
                "audio": "ca/cancer/cancer__us_3.mp3"
            }
        ]
    },
    "wordOrigin": "Old English, from Latin, ‘crab or creeping ulcer’, translating Greek karkinos, said to have been applied to such tumours because the swollen veins around them resembled the limbs of a crab. canker was the usual form until the 17th cent. Compare with Cancer."
}