Meanings
nounColey's toxin (plural Coley's toxins)
plural Coley's toxins
- A family of anti-cancerous toxins containing heat-killed strep bacteria in combination with other live bacteria, used as an injection into tumours, that can reduce or eliminate the cancers.
- An oncotoxic concoction of that family.
Origin
Named after the inventor, 19th-century bone cancer surgeon William Coley.
Full word history & related roots →Cite this entry
APA
Coley's toxin. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 4, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/Coley's%20toxin
MLA
“Coley's toxin.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/Coley's%20toxin. Accessed November 4, 2026.
Chicago
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “Coley's toxin,” accessed November 4, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/Coley's%20toxin.
Source: Coley's toxin on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.