(initial capital letter) the Crab, a zodiacal constellation between Gemini and Leo.
Astrology.Cancer,
the fourth sign of the zodiac: the cardinal water sign.
a person born under this sign, usually between June 21 and July 22.
tropic of Cancer. tropic1a
cancer A disease characterized by rapid growth of cells in the body, often in the form of a tumor. Cancer is invasive — that is, it can spread to surrounding tissues. Although this disease is a leading cause of death in the United States, research has provided considerable insight into its many causes (which may include diet, viruses, or environmental factors) and options for treatment (which include radiation, chemotherapy, surgery, and possibly gene therapy).
Usage
What does Cancer mean? Cancer is the name of a constellation that’s interpreted as resembling a crab. It’s sometimes referred to as The Crab.A constellation is a group of stars that appear near each other in the sky—especially a group that has been given a name. Cancer is considered one of the 12 zodiacal constellations—constellations that appear within a particular portion of the sky called the zodiac.In astronomy, the zodiac is the band of sky along which the paths of the sun, the moon, and the planets appear to move.Despite its basis in astronomy, the word zodiac is mainly associated with and most often used in the context of astrology, the nonscientific practice in which the positions of heavenly bodies at certain times are thought to influence or be correlated with human behavior and events. In astrology, zodiac refers to a diagram (often a circular one) representing the zodiac belt and showing the symbols associated with each of the 12 constellations or sections, which are called the signs of the zodiac. Cancer is one of these signs. It is situated between Gemini and Leo and is considered the fourth sign of the zodiac.The other signs of the zodiac are Aries, Taurus, Virgo, Libra, Scorpio, Sagittarius, Capricorn, Aquarius, and Pisces.The position of the sun in a particular portion of the zodiac at the moment of a person’s birth is thought to correlate with their personality. This is what people are referring to when they talk about their zodiac sign (or star signor often just sign). People whose sign is Cancer are those born between June 21 and July 22.In the context of the zodiac, the word Cancer can also be used as a noun to refer to someone who is born during this time, as in I was born in early July, so I’m a Cancer. The word Cancerian can be used to mean the same thing. It can also be used as an adjective form of Cancer.Example: I’m a Cancer, but I don’t think I fit into the sensitive Cancer stereotype.
Closer Look
The human immune system often fights off stray cancer cells just as it does bacteria and viruses. However, when cancer cells establish themselves in the body with their own blood supply and begin replicating out of control, cancer becomes a threatening neoplasm, or tumor. It takes a minimum of one billion cancer cells for a neoplasm to be detectable by conventional radiology and physical examinations. Cancer, which represents more than 100 separate diseases, destroys tissues and organs through invasive growth in a particular part of the body and by metastasizing to distant tissues and organs through the bloodstream or lymph system. Heredity, lifestyle habits (such as smoking), and a person’s exposure to certain viruses, toxic chemicals, and excessive radiation can trigger genetic changes that affect cell growth. The altered genes, or oncogenes, direct cells to multiply abnormally, thereby taking on the aggressive and destructive characteristics of cancer. Treatments such as surgery, chemotherapy, and radiation are effective with many cancers, but they also end up killing healthy cells. Gene therapy attempts to correct the faulty DNA that causes the uncontrolled growth of cancer cells. Researchers are investigating other treatments, such as immunotherapy (the stimulation of the body’s natural defenses), vectorization (aiming chemicals specifically at cancer cells), and nanotechnology (targeting cancer cells with minute objects the size of atoms).
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The term cancer is often used to describe a nonmedical condition that is undesirable, destructive, and invasive: “Watergate was a cancer on the presidency.”
First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English, from Latin: literally, “crab”; Latin stem cancr-, dissimilated from unattested carcr-, akin to Greek karkínos, Sanskrit karkata “crab”; canker
An Americanism dating back to 1945–50 moonshot for def. 1; moon + shot 1; the baseball sense, also capitalized as Moon shot, was named after Wallace Wade “Wally” Moon (1930–2018), U.S. baseball player, whose home run helped the Dodgers win the 1959 pennant
Launched in 2016 and reestablished in 2022, the Cancer Moonshot had the goal of making a decade’s worth of progress in cancer prevention, diagnosis, and treatment in five years. Funded through the 21st Century Cures Act, the Cancer Moonshot brought together patients, advocates, researchers, and clinicians dedicated to utilizing resources across the government, academia, and the private sector to end cancer as we know it.
A panel of experts was convened to make research recommendations on how to best carry out the Cancer Moonshot. Using the panel’s 12 broad recommendations as a guide, NCI identified goals that would reflect this guidance and accelerate discovery, increase collaboration, and expand data sharing across the cancer community. Since then, the Cancer Moonshot has supported 250 research projects and more than 70 programs and consortia that have helped to achieve the goals NCI set out to accomplish.
Accomplishments of the Cancer Moonshot
Established networks for direct patient engagement that would encourage people with cancer to contribute their tumor profile data and help expand knowledge about what therapies work, in whom, and in which types of cancer.
Built a pediatric immunotherapy discovery and development network to overcome challenges in the development of immunotherapies for childhood cancers.
Developed ways to overcome cancer’s resistance to therapy through studies to identify the mechanisms that lead cancer cells to become resistant to previously effective treatments.
Constructed a national cancer data ecosystem — the NCI Cancer Research Data Commons — to enable researchers, clinicians, and patients to contribute data and facilitate more efficient data analysis.
Intensified research on the leading causes of childhood cancers, including improving our understanding of fusion oncoproteins, a major driver of pediatric cancer, and using new preclinical models to develop inhibitors that target them.
Minimized cancer treatment’s debilitating side effects by accelerating the development of guidelines for routine monitoring and management of patient-reported symptoms.
Targeted the prevention and early detection of hereditary cancers by improving current methods and developing new strategies for the prevention and early detection of cancer in high-risk individuals.
Expanded the use of proven cancer prevention and early detection strategies to reduce cancer risk in all populations.
Conducted a retrospective analysis of patient data and biospecimens from past clinical trials to predict future patient outcomes.
Built the Human Tumor Atlas NetworkExit Disclaimer to document the genetic lesions and cellular interactions of an individual tumor as it evolves from a precancerous lesion to advanced cancer.
Developed new enabling cancer technologies to characterize tumors and test therapies.
Created the Cancer Screening Research Network and is supporting the Vanguard Study, which will assess the feasibility of using multi-cancer detection (MCD) tests in larger trials to assess whether the benefits of using MCD tests to screen for cancer outweigh the harms, and whether they can detect cancer early in a way that reduces deaths.
This is one of the words you can’t say in the new Trump Administration. See a comprehensive list at the Forbidden Words Project.
Note: This article was originally published on March 21, 2025, and has been updated with more terms and additional information.
from — Connelly, E. A. (2025, December 22). Federal Government’s Growing Banned Words List Is Chilling Act of Censorship. PEN America. https://pen.org/banned-words-list/
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holly troy ~ sacred folly 
The Cancer Moonshot / in the Oval Office sucks / America dry
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