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-megaly

Also ‑megalia and ‑megalic.

Abnormal enlargement of part of the body.

Greek megas, megal‑, great.

Examples include acromegaly (Greek akron, tip, extremity), abnormal growth of the hands, feet, and face; cardiomegaly (Greek kardia, heart), abnormal enlargement of the heart; and hepatomegaly (Greek hēpar, hēpat‑, liver), of the liver. The spelling ‑megalia is a rarer alternative: hepatomegalia, cardiomegalia. Related adjectives in either case are formed in ‑megalic: acromegalic, cytomegalic, characterized by enlarged cells, especially with reference to a disease caused by a cytomegalovirus.

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