A precancerous condition (or premalignant condition) is a disease

Disease

A disease is an abnormal condition affecting the body of an organism. It is often construed to be a medical condition associated with specific symptoms and signs. It may be caused by external factors, such as infectious disease, or it may be caused by internal dysfunctions, such as autoimmune...

, syndrome

Syndrome

In medicine and psychology, a syndrome is the association of several clinically recognizable features, signs , symptoms , phenomena or characteristics that often occur together, so that the presence of one or more features alerts the physician to the possible presence of the others...

, or finding that, if left untreated, may lead to cancer

Cancer

Cancer , known medically as a malignant neoplasm, is a large group of different diseases, all involving unregulated cell growth. In cancer, cells divide and grow uncontrollably, forming malignant tumors, and invade nearby parts of the body. The cancer may also spread to more distant parts of the...

. It is a generalized state associated with a significantly increased risk of cancer.

Premalignant lesion is a morphologically altered tissue in which cancer is more likely to occur than its apparently normal counterpart.

Examples of pre-malignant conditions include actinic keratosis

Actinic keratosis

Actinic keratosis is a premalignant condition of thick, scaly, or crusty patches of skin. It is more common in fair-skinned people. It is associated with those who are frequently exposed to the sun, as it is usually accompanied by solar damage...

, Barrett's esophagus

Barrett's esophagus

Barrett's esophagus refers to an abnormal change in the cells of the inferior portion of the esophagus. A positive diagnosis generally requires observing specific macroscopic and microscopic changes...

, atrophic gastritis

Atrophic gastritis

Atrophic gastritis is a process of chronic inflammation of the stomach mucosa, leading to loss of gastric glandular cells and their eventual replacement by intestinal and fibrous tissues...

, and cervical dysplasia.

The term was coined in 1875 by Romanian

Romanians

The Romanians are an ethnic group native to Romania, who speak Romanian; they are the majority inhabitants of Romania....

 physician Victor Babeş

Victor Babes

Victor Babeș was a Romanian physician, biologist, and one of the earliest bacteriologists. He made early and significant contributions to the study of rabies, leprosy, diphtheria, tuberculosis, and other infectious diseases....

.