glioblastoma

noun

glio·​blas·​to·​ma ˌglī-ō-ˌbla-ˈstō-mə 

variants or less commonly glioblastoma multiforme

-ˌməlt-ə-ˈfȯrm-ē 

plural glioblastomas also glioblastomata ˌglī-ō-ˌbla-ˈstō-mə-tə  or glioblastomas multiforme or glioblastoma multiformes

: a malignant rapidly growing astrocytoma of the central nervous system and usually of a cerebral hemisphere

Examples of glioblastoma in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

On Monday, Cecile Richards, the longtime labor organizer, feminist activist, and author who helmed Planned Parenthood for over a decade, died at home at the age of 67 after being diagnosed with glioblastoma—a type of brain tumor—in 2023. —Emma Specter, Vogue, 20 Jan. 2025

She was diagnosed in 2023 with glioblastoma, an aggressive form of brain cancer, her family said in a statement. —Penelope Green, New York Times, 20 Jan. 2025

Richards was diagnosed in 2023 with glioblastoma, an aggressive form of brain cancer. —Emily Mae Czachor, CBS News, 20 Jan. 2025

Eight years later, his father, Andrew Hoffman, would succumb to cancer in March 2021 after being diagnosed with glioblastoma in July 2020. —Wayne Sterling, CNN, 15 Jan. 2025

Word History

Etymology

New Latin, from glia glia + blast- + -oma

First Known Use

circa 1923, in the meaning defined above

Medical Definition

glioblastoma

noun

glio·​blas·​to·​ma ˌglī-(ˌ)ō-bla-ˈstō-mə 

plural glioblastomas also glioblastomata -mət-ə 

: a malignant rapidly growing astrocytoma of the central nervous system and usually of a cerebral hemisphere

Glioblastoma is the worst grade of malignant glioma, a relatively uncommon but deadly class of brain tumors that kills 97% of those diagnosed within 5 years.

—Greg Miller, Science

called also glioblastoma multiforme