Lepidic growth

Last revised by Rohit Sharma on 29 Sep 2020

Lepidic growth is a pathological term referring to a pattern of cell proliferation along the lining of the alveolar structures of the lung as is seen in a subset of lung tumors 1.

History and etymology

  • ‘lepidic’ was coined by the English pathologist John George Adam (1862-1926) whilst at McGill University, where he was the first Professor of Pathology 2,3
  • he first employed the word lepidic in a lecture to the Toronto Pathological Society on 4 January 1902 to refer to tumors derived from surface lining cells, subtly different from its contemporaneous usage 2
  • lepidic is derived from the Greek word 'λεπις' meaning a skin/membrane 2
  • although erroneously posited by many articles, the word’s origins have nothing to do with butterflies, of the genus, Lepidoptera 2

Related pathology

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