A rare malignant tumor containing both carcinoma (cancer of epithelial cells) and sarcoma (cancer of connective tissue) components.
From Greek 'karkinos' (crab, cancer) combined with 'sarkoma' from 'sarx' meaning 'flesh.' This is a 20th-century medical term created to classify mixed-tissue malignancies that didn't fit traditional tumor categories.
Carcinosarcomas are so rare that many doctors might never see one in their entire career, but they're scientifically important because they reveal how cancer cells can 'forget' what type of tissue they should be—sometimes becoming multiple types at once!
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