Angiophilia

Angiophilia is a rarely used term in medicine and pathology describing an apparent affinity of tissues, cells, or pathologic processes for blood vessels. The word is built from angio-, vessel, and philia, fondness or attraction. In historic and some niche writings, angiophilia was used as a descriptive label for patterns in which neoplastic cells, inflammatory elements, or pigment-containing cells appear to localize along or around blood vessels, or to follow vascular routes during spread or deposition. Because the term lacks a precise clinical or histological definition, it has not become part of formal diagnostic nomenclature and is encountered mainly in ancient texts or limited case reports.

Modern usage tends toward more precise language such as perivascular localization or growth, angiogenesis, or vasculotropism, depending on the observed phenomenon. As a result, angiophilia is considered largely obsolete or ambiguous in contemporary practice. It should be distinguished from related concepts such as perivascular invasion (cellular or tumor infiltration around vessels) and angiogenesis (the growth of new vessels).

In summary, angiophilia refers to an historical notion of an affinity for blood vessels that has not been standardized or widely adopted in current medical terminology. When encountered in literature, it typically serves as a descriptive shorthand rather than a defined pathological process.