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Definition of Cadaver wart
Medically reviewed by Dr. Otari Nergadze, Neurosurgeon | Updated: January 2026
Cadaver wart: A warty growth on the hand due to tuberculosis, typically of someone doing postmortem examinations. A cadaver with unsuspected tuberculosis was once a major hazard for pathologists and others in the autopsy room. Cadaver warts were among the least of the dangers.
A cadaver wart is known by a number of other names including anatomical tubercle, anatomical wart, dissection tubercle, necrogenic wart, postmortem tubercle, prosector's tubercle, prosector's wart, tuberculosis cutis verrucosa and verruca necrogenica.