chemopreventionn.
/ˌkiːmə(ʊ)prᵻˈvɛnʃn/, /ˌkɛmə(ʊ)prᵻˈvɛnʃn/, U.S. /ˈˌkimoʊˌpriˈvɛn(t)ʃən/, /ˈˌkimoʊˌprəˈvɛn(t)ʃən/, /ˈˌkɛmoʊˌpriˈvɛn(t)ʃən/, /ˈˌkɛmoʊˌprəˈvɛn(t)ʃən/ The prevention of disease by the administration of drugs or other chemical agents (cf. chemoprophylaxis n. at chemo- comb. form ); (in later use esp.) the administration of dietary supplements, plant extracts, etc., to prevent the development of cancer. Frequently attributive.
ΘΚΠ
the world > health and disease > healing > medical treatment > treatment by medicine or drug > [noun] > in order to prevent disease
chemoprophylaxis1931
chemoprevention1966
1966 Med. Clinics N. Amer. 50 279 (title) Chemoprevention of rheumatic fever.
1976 Federation Proc. (Federation Amer. Soc. Exper. Biol.) 35 1332 Natural retinoids have limited usefulness for chemoprevention of cancer because of inadequate tissue distribution and excessive toxicity.
1992 Chicago Tribune 20 Dec. v. 1/4 Cancer researcher Michael Wargowich specializes in chemoprevention—the warding off of malignancies through natural foods and extracts.
1999 N.Y. Times Mag. 10 Oct. 36/3 (advt.) Chemoprevention strategies are another option. This approach involves taking tamoxifen, a drug used to prevent recurrence in women who have already been diagnosed with the disease [sc. breast cancer], and micronutrients like vitamin E and selenium.
2003 BusinessWeek 9 June 123/2 Like Evista, most chemoprevention drugs under study were originally developed for other diseases.
This entry has been updated (OED Third Edition, December 2008; most recently modified version published online March 2022).
<
n.1966