Angiogenesis means the creation of new blood vessels, a critical natural process that occurs in the body both in health and in disease.

Blood, carried in the vessels, delivers oxygen and nutrients to and removes waste products from the tissues. When new tissue is formed, blood vessel formation must occur as well. Thus, new tissue formed, for example, with the repair of wounds and the formation of the placenta during pregnancy are normal examples of intense new blood vessel formation (angiogenesis).