[CDHart]

Thanks for the info -- I thought it sounded more like something cancerous, but I guess not.

carolyn

[PurVirgo]

cyst = capsule, cell

blast = referring to immature (developmentally speaking) or primative cells.

You're not too far off the mark. A neoplasm is a new growth, and can refer to both a newly fertilized egg, or a tumor. So, your logic is very good :-)

[Mrs. Don-o]

I think the terms "zygote," "morula," "blastocyst," etc. are perfectly proper in a technical sceintific context, but are sometimes used instead of "human embryo" in general journalism because they sound less human--- "blastocyst" sounds cancerous, as you noticed.

Like "fetal" sounds like a combination of "fecal" and "fatal."

("I didn't kill an unborn baby as long as your index finger, I merely removed 5 cm fetal material...")

See Politics and the English Language by George Orwell.