What does biomedicine mean?
Biomedicine is the branch of science that applies biology, physiology, biochemistry, and other natural sciences to the understanding and treatment of human disease. The term is most often used in academic and professional contexts — in names of departments, journals, and research programs — and it underpins modern developments such as vaccines, genetic therapies, and pharmaceutical drugs. A secondary sense uses the word more broadly to mean standard, evidence-based medicine as practiced in the West, especially when contrasting it with traditional or alternative healing systems. Because it combines the combining form "bio-" (life) with "medicine," the word literally signals medicine grounded in the life sciences. Its connotations are rigorously scientific and clinical rather than folkloric or holistic. For students, researchers, and general readers alike, "biomedicine" is a useful word for describing the laboratory-driven engine behind contemporary healthcare innovation.
nounThe branch of science that applies the principles of biology, physiology, and related natural sciences to medicine, especially in the study of disease and the development of treatments. It can also refer to standard, scientifically based medical practice as distinct from alternative approaches.
- The application of biological and physiological sciences to medical research and practice.
- Standard, scientifically based Western medicine as contrasted with traditional or alternative healing systems.
"Recent advances in biomedicine have transformed the treatment of previously incurable diseases."
"She earned her doctorate in biomedicine before joining the vaccine research team."
"Critics of alternative therapies argue that claims should be tested by the standards of biomedicine."
Rarely used in the plural, since biomedicine is typically treated as an uncountable field of study; plural forms appear mainly in non-native or loosely edited texts.
"Different national traditions have produced distinct approaches within the biomedicines of their research communities."
Every mRNA vaccine and targeted cancer therapy you hear about is a triumph of biomedicine — a field whose very name only became common in the twentieth century.
Reviewed by Deb Chak, Editor. AI-assisted content curated by RJS Tech Solutions LLP.
Etymology of biomedicine
Biomedicine combines "bio-," from the ancient Greek word "bios" meaning "life," with "medicine," which descends from the Latin "medicina," derived from "medicus" (physician) via "mederi" (to heal). The compound emerged as scientific disciplines increasingly converged on medical questions, becoming widespread in English during the twentieth century as laboratory research became central to medical progress. It shares its Greek root with words like "biology" and "biography," and its Latin root with "medicinal" and "remedy."
Word family
Usage notes
The word is formal or academic in register, appearing chiefly in scientific writing, university course descriptions, and discussions of research policy. In its second sense it can carry a slightly polemical tone when used to distinguish conventional science-based medicine from alternative practices.
Don't confuse with
"Biomedical" is an adjective describing things relating to biomedicine (e.g., biomedical research), while "biomedicine" is the noun naming the field itself.
"Medicine" is the broader term for the science and practice of diagnosing and treating disease, whereas "biomedicine" specifically denotes the laboratory-science-based approach to medicine.