or  Bancroft's filariasis  n :  filariasis caused by a slender white filaria of the genus Wuchereria (W. bancrofti) that is transmitted in larval form by mosquitoes, lives in lymph vessels and lymphoid tissues periodically shedding larvae into the peripheral bloodstream, and often causes elephantiasis by blocking lymphatic drainage
 
Ban•croft, Joseph (1836-1894), British physician. In 1877 Bancroft discovered a species of nematode parasite (Wuchereria bancrofti) and announced his discovery the following year in an article on filarial disease.
 
   
 
Published under license with Merriam-Webster, Incorporated.  © 1997-2024.