A role played by a chemical compound to induce direct or indirect DNA damage. Such damage can potentially lead to the formation of a malignant tumour, but DNA damage does not lead inevitably to the creation of cancerous cells.
A xenobiotic (Greek, xenos "foreign"; bios "life") is a compound that is foreign to a living organism. Principal xenobiotics include: drugs, carcinogens and various compounds that have been introduced into the environment by artificial means.
