How to Pronounce Metastasis

Say it like this: meh-TAS-tah-sis. The stress falls on the second syllable, so you say TAS louder than the other parts. A common mistake is putting the stress on the first syllable (MEH-tuh-stuh-sis), but that's not correct.

The word breaks down into four syllables: me-tas-ta-sis. When you say it out loud, it flows like: meh (sounds like 'meh'), tas (rhymes with 'gas'), tah (rhymes with 'ah'), and sis (rhymes with 'hiss').

In simple terms, metastasis means cancer spreading to other parts of the body. Instead of staying in one spot, the cancer cells travel through the body and start growing in new locations far from where they started.

The word comes from ancient Greek. 'Meta-' means 'beyond' or 'change,' and '-stasis' means 'standing' or 'placement.' Together, it literally means 'a change in position'—which describes cancer moving to a new location.

The plural is 'metastases' (pronounced meh-TAS-tah-seez). Since the word comes from Greek, it uses a Greek plural ending instead of just adding an 's' to the end.

'Metastasize' is a related word—it's the verb form meaning 'to undergo metastasis' or 'to spread.' You might hear a doctor say a cancer 'metastasizes,' which is just the action version of the noun metastasis.

Here's an example: 'The doctor explained that metastasis had occurred, meaning the cancer had spread beyond the original tumor site.' This sentence shows the word being used to describe what has happened, not as medical advice.

There isn't a single standard abbreviation, but doctors sometimes just say 'mets' as a shorthand when talking casually. However, 'metastasis' is the proper medical term you'll see written in most formal reports and materials.