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癌

がん

cancer; (figuratively) a canker, the root problem eating away at something

By Nihongo PathUpdated

Examples

  1. 彼の母は癌で亡くなった。

    かれのはははがんでなくなった。

    His mother died of cancer.

  2. 早期に発見すれば癌は治せることが多い。

    そうきにはっけんすればがんはなおせることがおおい。

    If it is found early, cancer can often be cured.

  3. 派閥争いこそがこの組織の癌だ。

    はばつあらそいこそがこのそしきのがんだ。

    Factional infighting is the cancer eating away at this organisation.

Common patterns

癌になる
to develop cancer
胃癌
stomach cancer
組織の癌
the cancer within an organisation

Memory tip

Newspapers and everyday writing often use がん in kana or ガン in katakana rather than the heavy kanji. The figurative sense — the rot at the heart of a group — is common and carries real force, so use it carefully around anyone touched by the illness.

Kanji in this word

  • 癌Not in the N5–N1 kanji lists

Quick check

1 / 2Multiple choiceDifficulty 4 of 5

What does 癌 mean?