Read more about this disease, some with Classification – Types – Signs and symptoms – Genetics – Pathophysiology – Diagnosis – Screening – Prevention – Treatment and management – Cures and much more, some including pictures and video when available.
Dysplasia (from Greek, roughly: “bad formation”) is a term used in pathology to refer to an abnormality in maturation of cells within a tissue. This generally consists of an expansion of immature cells, with a corresponding decrease in the number and location of mature cells. Dysplasia is often indicative of an early neoplastic process. The term dysplasia is typically used when the cellular abnormality is restricted to the originating tissue, as in the case of an early, in-situ neoplasm. For example, epithelial dysplasia of the cervix (cervical intraepithelial neoplasia – a disorder commonly detected by an abnormal pap smear) consists of an increased population of immature (basal-like) cells which are restricted to the mucosal surface, and have not invaded through the basement membrane to the deeper soft tissues. Myelodysplastic syndromes, or dysplasia of blood-forming cells, show increased numbers of immature cells in the bone marrow, and a decrease in mature, functional cells in the blood.
Dysplasia, in which cell maturation and differentiation are delayed, can be contrasted with metaplasia, in which cells of one mature, differentiated type are replaced by cells of another mature, differentiated type.
These terms are related since they represent the three steps in the progression of many malignant neoplasms (cancers) of epithelial tissues.
[tubepress mode=’tag’, tagValue=’Dysplasia’]