Pathology is the science of

• A. causes and effects of disease
• B. function of organs
• C. structure of tissues
• D. reproduction of cells

Answer: (A)

Pathology studies disease processes—the causes of disease and the changes they produce in the body. It looks at why disease starts (etiology), how it develops (pathogenesis), and the structural and functional effects these diseases have on tissues and organs. That focus on causes and effects is what makes this option the best description. The other topics fit into related subjects: the function of organs is physiology, the structure of tissues is histology or anatomy, and the reproduction of cells is cell biology or cytology.