How to Pronounce Urethral Carcinoma in Situ

Say it like this: yoo-REE-thral kar-sih-NOH-mah in SY-too. The stress falls on the second syllable of 'urethral' (REE) and on the third syllable of 'carcinoma' (NOH). The phrase 'in situ' is pronounced as three separate short words: 'in' like the preposition, then 'SY' (rhymes with 'my'), then 'too' (rhymes with 'blue').

Many people put the stress on the wrong syllable and say 'ur-ee-THRAL' instead of 'yoo-REE-thral.' Others mispronounce carcinoma by stressing the first syllable: 'KAR-sin-oh-mah' instead of 'kar-sih-NOH-mah.' Listen for the stress on REE and NOH to say it correctly.

Break it into four parts: U-RE-THRAL (the tube) / CAR-CI-NO-MA (the growth) / IN (the word) / SI-TU (the location). Each part has its own syllable pattern, which makes the full term easier to tackle when you say it slowly.

Carcinoma comes from Greek and means 'cancer.' The phrase 'in situ' is Latin and means 'in place' or 'in its original location.' Together, 'carcinoma in situ' describes a cancer that is contained in one spot and hasn't spread to surrounding tissue yet.

Urethral (yoo-REE-thral) simply means 'related to the urethra,' which is the tube that carries urine out of the body. Any time you see 'urethral,' think: 'having to do with that tube.'

A doctor might say: 'The pathology report showed urethral carcinoma in situ.' This tells you the report identified a type of cancer in the urethral tissue that is contained in that area.

You might hear urethral stricture, urethral obstruction, or urethritis—all words that start with 'urethral' because they all relate to that same tube. Learning that 'urethral' means 'of the urethra' helps you understand all of these related terms.

Yes, doctors sometimes abbreviate it as 'CIS' when they're talking about carcinoma in situ in general, though the full name 'urethral carcinoma in situ' is often used to be specific about the location. CIS is pronounced as three separate letters: 'C-I-S.'