What is dysplasia?

Meaning varies: This word, a favorite of dr. Papanicolaou who discovered the pap smear test, means abnormal growth. Most often, it means cells that look abnormal, as if they may give rise to a cancer but have not done so yet. If used in reference to a birth defect, it's a malformation often of bone, kidney, or an artery.

Bad + formation: The term is derived from the greek roots dys= bad & plassein =to form.It has been applied to situations where body parts didn't develop properly during pregnancy or after birth. Bony dysplasia= bones formed wrong. It is also applied to situations where the bad formation occurs later= tumors where a normal tissue converts to a new "bad"pattern of growth.