Infiltratory

Infiltratory is an English adjective used to describe processes, cells, or growth that invade or permeate surrounding tissues. The term derives from infiltrate, with the suffix -atory indicating pertinence or characteristic behavior. It is closely related to the more common term infiltrative, and in some medical texts infiltratory appears as a variant.

In medical and biological contexts, infiltratory refers to patterns or phenomena in which cells or substances spread into adjacent tissue rather than forming a clearly bounded mass. In pathology and oncology, an infiltratory or infiltrative tumor margin means cancer cells extend beyond the primary lesion into surrounding stroma, making complete resection more challenging. For example, invasive ductal carcinoma of the breast is described as having infiltrative margins when cancer cells penetrate the surrounding breast tissue. Inflammatory or infectious conditions may also be described as infiltratory when immune cells or pathogens infiltrate tissues.

Distinctions and usage notes: infiltratory is often used interchangeably with infiltrative, but infiltrative is more common in modern medical literature. The choice of term can reflect regional habits or the preference of a particular author or specialty. In histopathology reports, the description of an infiltratory pattern helps convey prognosis and treatment implications, since infiltrative disease tends to be associated with a higher likelihood of residual tissue involvement after surgery.

Beyond medicine, infiltratory can occasionally appear in broader biological discussions to denote permeation or invasion of tissues by fluids, cells, or other substances, though such usage is less standardized.