Biomedical Technology Exam 4.00

Radiation Therapy

Treatment with high energy rays(such as X-rays) to kill cancer cells and shrink tumors. the radiation may come from outside the body (external radiation) or from radioactive materials placed directly in the tumor(implant radiation). Also called radiotherapy

Radioactive

Giving off radiation

Radon

Radioactive gas that is released by uranium, a substance found in soil and rock. When too much radon is breathed in, it can damage lung cells and lead to lung cancer

Relative Risk

Comparison of the risk of developing cancer in persons with a certain type of exposure or characteristic with the risk in persons who do not have this exposure or characteristic

Remission

Decrease and or disappearance of the signs and symptoms of cancer. When this happens, the disease is said to be "in remission" a remission can be temporary or permanent.

Retinoblastoma

Eye cancer caused by the loss of both copies of the tumor repressing gene RB; the inherited form typically occurs in childhood because one gene is missing from the time of birth

Retrovirus

A type of virus that has an RNA genome. The RNA acts as a template for the production of DNA that is integrated into the DNA of the host cell. Many retroviruses are believed to be oncogenic.

Risk Factor

Something that increases the chance of developing a disease

Rous Sarcoma Virus

Chicken retrovirus that was the first virus shown to cause a malignancy

Sarcoma

Malignant tumor that begins in the connective and supportive tissue

Screening

Checking for disease when there are no symptoms

Secondary Tumor

A term that is used to describe either a new primary cancer or a metastasis

SEER Program

Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End results program of the National Cancer Institute. Started in 1973, SEER collects cancer incidence data in 17 geographic areas covering about 28 percent of the total U.S. population

Side Effect

Problem that occurs when treatment affects healthy cells. Common side effects of cancer treatment are fatigue, nausea, vomiting, decreased blood cell counts, hair loss, and mouth sores.

Single-neucleotide Polymorphism (SNP)

The most common type of change in DNA (molecules inside cells that carry genetic information). SNP's occur when a single neucleotide (building block of DNA) is replaced with another. These changes may cause disease and affect how a person reacts to bacteria, viruses, drugs, and other substances

somatic cell

Any of the body cells except the reproductive cells

Squamous cell cancer

type of cancer that arises from the squamous cells, which are thin, flat cells that look like fish scales. Squamous cells are found in the skin, the lining of hollow organs, and the passages of the respiratory and digestive tracts

Stage

extent of a cancer, especially whether the disease has spread from the original site to other parts of the body

Staging

Doing exams and tests to learn the extent of the cancer, especially whether it has spread from it's original site to the rest of the body

Stem Cells

Cells from which other types of cells develop; for example, blood cells develop from blood-forming stem cells.

Stroma

The nonmalignant host cells and extracellular matrix in which a tumor grows

Stromal Cell

A type of cell that makes up certain types of connective tissue(supporting tissue that surrounds other tissues and organs)

Sun protection factor (SPF)

Scale for rating the level of sunburn protection in sunscreens. Sunscreens with a value of 2-11 give minimal protection against sunburns. Sunscreens with a value of 12-29 give moderate protection. SPF's of 30 or higher give high protection against sunburns.

Sunscreen

Substance that helps protect the skin from the suns harmful rays. Using lotions or creams that contain sunscreens can protect the skin from damage that may lead to cancer. See also SPF

Survival Rate

Proportion of patients alive at some point after their initial diagnosis of cancer

Telomerase

An enzyme in cells that helps keep them alive by adding DNA to telomeres. Each time a cell divides, the telomeres lose a small amount of DNA and become shorter. Over time, the chromosomes become damaged and the cells die. Telomerase helps keep this from happening. Cancer cells usually have more telomerase than normal cells.

Telomere

Ends of a chromosome. In vertebrate cells, each telomere consists of thousands of copies of the same DNA sequence, repeated again and again. Telomeres become shorter each time a cell divides, when one or more telomeres reach a minimum length, cell division stops. This mechanism limits the number of times a cell can divide

Testosterone

Male sex hormone

Transformation

Change that a normal cell undergoes as it becomes malignant

Tumor

Abnormal mass of tissue that results when divide more than they should or do not die when they should. Tumors preform no useful body function. They may be either benign (non-cancerous) or malignant (cancerous)

Tumor Marker

Substance in tissue, blood, or other body fluids that may suggest a person has cancer

Tumor Microenvironment

The normal cells, molecules, and blood vessels that surround and feed a tumor cell. A tumor can change its micro-environment. The micro-environment can influence how a tumor grows and spreads.

Tumor-suppressor gene

A type of gene that makes a protein called a tumor-suppressor protein that helps control cell growth. Mutations in tumor suppressor genes can lead to cancer.

Tumorigenisis (oncogenesis)

The process by which normal cells become cancerous

Ultraviolet (UV) Radiation

Invisible rays that are part of the energy that comes from the sun. UV radiation that reaches earth's surface is made up of two different substances UVA and UVB. Ultraviolet radiation also comes from sun lamps and tanning beds. It can cause skin damage, premature aging, melanoma, and other types of skin cancer. It can also cause problems with the eyes and immune system. Skin specialists recommend that people use sunscreens that protect the skin from both kinds of ultraviolet radiation.

X-Chromosome Inactivation

Process by which 1 of the 2 X chromosomes in each cell comes from a female mammal becomes condensed and inactive. This process ensures that most genes on the X- chromosome are expressed to the same extent in both males and females.

X-Ray

High-energy radiation used in low doses to diagnose diseases and in high doses, treat cancer

Xeroderma Pigmentosum

Hereditary disease characterized by extreme sensitivity to ultraviolet radiation, including sunlight and a tendency to develop skin cancers. Caused by inadequate DNA repair.

Imaging

Tests that produce pictures of areas inside the body

Immunotherapy

Treatment to boost or restore the ability of the immune system to fight cancer, infections, and other diseases. Also called biotherapy or biological-modifier-response therapy

Incidence

Number of new cases of a disease diagnosed each year

Incidence Rate

Number of new cases per year per 100,000 people

In Situ Cancer

Cancer that has remained in the tissue in which it originated

Invasion

As related to cancer, the spread of cancer cells into healthy tissue adjacent to the tumor

Invasive Cancer

Cancer that has spread beyond the layer of tissue in which it developed

Keratin

Insoluble protein that is the major constituent of the outer layer of the skin, nails, and hair

Lesion

Area of abnormal tissue

Leukemia

Cancer of the blood-forming tissue, such as the bone marrow, which causes large numbers of cells to be produced and enter the bloodstream

Lifetime risk

Probability that a person, over the course of a lifetime, will develop a type of cancer

Li-Fraumeni syndrome

Rare family predisposition to multiple cancers, caused by a mutation in the p53 tumor-suppressor gene

Lumen

The cavity or channel within a tube or tubular organ, such as the lumen of the gut

Malignant

Cancerous, can invade the nearby tissue, and can spread to other parts of the body

Melanin

Skin pigment (substance that gives the skin it's color). Dark skinned people have more melanin than light skinned people

Melanocyte

Cell in the skin and eyes that produces and contains the pigment called melanin

Melanoma

Cancer of the cells that produce melanin. Melanoma usually begins in a mole but can also begin in other pigmented tissues, such as, in the eye

Metastasis

The spread of cancer from one part of the body to another

Metastasize

To spread from one part of the body to another. When cancer cells Metastasize and become secondary tumors, the cells in the metastatic tumor are like those in the primary tumor.

Mole

A benign growth on the skin (usually dark in color) that is formed by a cluster of melanocytes. See also neevus

Monoclonal

population of cells that was derived by cell division from a single ancestral cell

Morbidity

Disease

Mortality

Death

Mutagen

Any substance that is known to cause mutations

Mutagenesis

Process by which mutations occur

Mutation

Any change in the DNA of a cell. Mutations may be caused by mistakes during cell division, or they may be caused by exposure to DNA-damaging agents in the environment. Mutations can be harmful, beneficial, or have no effect if they occur in cells that make eggs or sperm, they can be inherited; if mutations occur in other types of cells, they are not inherited. Certain mutations may lead to cancer or other diseases

National Cancer Institute (NCI)

The largest of the 27 separate institutes, centers, and divisions of the National Institutes of Health (NIH). The NCI coordinates the federal government's cancer research program

National Institutes of Health (NIH)

one of the eight health agencies of the Public Health Service composed of 27 separate institutes and centers, NIH is the largest biomedical research facility in the world

Necrosis

Cell death

Neoplastia

Abnormal and uncontrolled growth of cells

Neoplasm

An abnormal mass of tissue that results when cells divide more than they should or do not die when they should. (Can be benign or malignant)

Nevus

Medical term for a benign growth on the skin that is formed by a cluster of melanocytes, also called a mole

Non-Hodgkin Lymphoma

one of the several types of lymphoma (cancer that develops in the lymphatic system) that are not Hodgkin lymphoma. Hodgkin lymphoma is rare and occurs most often in people ranged from 15 to 40 and in people over 55 all other lymphomas are grouped together and called non-Hodgkin lymphoma.

Non-melanoma Skin Cancer

Skin cancer that does not involve melanocytes. basal cell cancer and squamous cell cancer are non-melanoma skin cancers

Oncogene

A gene that is a mutated form of a gene involved in normal cell growth. Oncogenes may cause the growth of cancer cells. Mutations in genes that can become oncogenes can be inherited or caused by being exposed to substances in the environment that cause cancer.

Oncogenic

Having the capacity to cause cancer

Oncologist

Doctor who specializes in treating cancer. some oncologists specialize in a particular type of cancer treatment. For example, a radiation oncologist specializes in treating cancer with radiation.

Oncology

Study of cancer encompassing it's physical, chemical, and biologic properties

Oopherectomy

Surgical removal of one or both ovaries

p53

Gene that normally inhibits the growth of tumors, which can prevent or slow the spread of cancer

Palliative Treatment

Treatment that does not alter the course of a disease, but improves the quality of life

Penetrance

The likelihood that a given gene will actually result in disease, the proportion of people with a particular genetic change,(like a mutation in a specific gene), who exhibit signs and symptoms of a disorder

Polyclonal

Population of cells that was derived by cell division from more than one ancestral cell

Polymorphism

A common variation or mutation in DNA

Polyp

A growth that protrudes from a mucous membrane, such as the colon

Precancerous

A term that is used to describe a condition that may, or is likely to become cancer

Progesterone

Female hormone produced by the ovaries and placenta; responsible for preparing the uterine lining for implantation of an early embryo

Prognosis

Probable outcome or course of a disease; the chance of recovery or recurrance

Prophylatic

Treatment administered or taken to prevent or protect from a disease

Proto-Oncogene

A gene involved in normal cell growth. Mutations (changes) in a proto-oncogene may cause it to become an oncogene, which can cause the growth of cancer cells

CEA assay

Laboratory test to measure the level of carcinoembryonic antigen (CEA), a substance that is sometimes found in an increased amount in the blood of patients with some cancers, with some diseases, or those who smoke

Cell Cycle

Sequence of events by which cells enlarge and divide. Includes stages typically named G1, S, G2, and M

Chemoprevention

Use of natural or laboratory made substances to reduce the risk of, or delay the development or recurrence of, cancer

Chemotherapy

Treatment with anticancer drugs

Chronic Lymphocytic Leukemia

A disease in which too many disease fighting lymphocytes are found in the body. The developing lymphocytes do not mature correctly and too many are made. The lymphocytes do not fight infection as they should and are found in the blood and bone marrow. Chronic Lymphocytic leukemia normally progresses slowly and usually occurs in people over 60 years in age

Chronic Myclogenous Leukemia

A disease in which too many white blood cells are made in the bone marrow. Chronic Myclogenous Leukemia affects the cells that develop into specific white blood cells called granulocytes. The cells do not mature and become too numerous. The immature cells are then found in the blood and bone marrow. This disease progresses slowly and usually occurs in people middle aged or older, although it can occur in children

Clinical Trial

Research study that involves patients. Each study is designed to find better ways to prevent, detect, diagnose, or treat cancer and to answer scientific questions

Colonoscopy

Procedure that uses a flexible fiber optic endoscope to examine the internal surface of the colon along it's entire length

Combination Chemotherapy

Treatment in which two or more chemicals are used to obtain more effective results

Computed Tomography

X-ray procedure that uses a computer to produce a detailed picture of a cross section of the body; also called a CAT or CT scan

Contact Inhibition

Inhibition of cell division in normal (non-cancerous) cells when they contact a neighboring cell

CT (or CAT) scan

See computed tomography