metaplasia
Meaning of metaplasia: Metaplasia is a reversible change in which one mature cell type is replaced by another, typically in response to ongoing irritation or stress.
Definition of metaplasia
Metaplasia is a change in which cells of one normal, mature type are replaced by a different normal, mature cell type not usually found in that particular tissue. It generally develops as an adaptive response to chronic irritation, inflammation, or another ongoing stress, and it is considered reversible if the underlying trigger is removed.
A well known example is Barrett esophagus, in which the normal squamous lining of the lower esophagus is replaced by a columnar cell type more typical of the intestine, a change associated with long standing acid reflux. Similarly, the lining of the airways can shift from its usual cell type to a different one in long term smokers.
Metaplasia itself is not cancer, but the tissue that undergoes this change can, in some settings, go on to develop further abnormal changes called dysplasia, and in some cases eventually progress toward cancer, which is why metaplastic tissue in certain locations is monitored over time.
How metaplasia is built
- meta- Prefix · Greek change, beyond, after
- -plasia Suffix · Greek formation, growth, development
A medical term is read from its ending backwards: the suffix first, then the prefix, then the root. See all 223 word parts.
Used in a sentence
Biopsy of the lower esophagus revealed intestinal metaplasia consistent with Barrett esophagus.
Good to know
Metaplasia, dysplasia, and cancer describe a spectrum of increasingly abnormal cell change rather than the same finding, and metaplasia itself is not considered a cancerous or precancerous diagnosis on its own.
Word origin
Where “metaplasia” comes from
Formed from Greek meta-, meaning change, and plasis, from plassein, meaning to form or mold.