Cancer Terms and Definitions

Active surveillance

Closely monitoring a patient’s cancer with regular tests without immediately treating it

Adenoma

a benign tumor that begins in glandular or gland-like epithelial tissue

Alopecia

hair loss from areas of the body where hair normally grows; it can be a side effect of some cancer treatments

Brachytherapy

type of radiation therapy in which radioactive material is placed inside ot very close to the tumor

benign tumor

a noncancerous abnormal growth that does not invade nearby tissues or spread to distant parts of the body

cancer staging

process of determining the extent of cancer in the body, including the tumor’s size and whether it has spread to lymph nodes or other organs

carcinoma

a malignant cancer that begins in epithelial cells, which cover body surfaces or line internal organs

carcinoma in situ

abnormal or cancer cells that are confined to the place where they first developed and have not invaded nearby tissue

gleason score

grading system used primarily for prostate cancer that describes how abnormal prostate cancer cells looks under a microscope and helps predict how aggressively cancer may behave

histologic grading

process of examining cancer cells under a microscope to determine how abnormal they appear and how closely they resemble normal cells

hormone therapy

cancer treatment that adds, blocks, or removes hormones to slow or stop the growth of cancers that depend on hormones

immunotherapy

type of cancer treatment that helps the body’s immune system recognize, attack, or destroy cancer cells

leukemia

cancers of the bone marrow origin

malignant tumor

uncontrolled growth and invasive, they migrate to other organs (metastasis)

lymphedema

swelling caused by a buildup of lymph fluid, often occuring when lymph nodes or vessels are damaged/removed during cancer t

mucositis

inflammation and irritation of the mucous membranes

neoadjuvant treatment

given before the main treatment to shrink a tumor or improve the effectiveness of the primary treatment

neoplasm

a tumor (abnormal growth of tissue caused by uncontrolled cell growth)

oncogenes

genes that, when mutated or abnormally activated, can cause normal cells to grow uncontrollably and contribute to cancer development

prostate-specific antigen (PSA)

protein made by prostate cells, levels in blood may be measured to help detect prostate cancer

sarcoma

cancer that originates in plasma cells of bone marrow

sentinel lymph node

first lymph node to which cancer cells are most likely to spread from the primary tumor

triple negative breast cancer (TNBC)

breast cancer whose cells lack estrogen receptors, progesterone receptors, and excess HER2 protein

tumor-suppressor genes

normal genes that make proteins that slow cell growth, repair DNA, or trigger cell death (apoptosis)

vesicants

drugs that can cause severe tissue damage and blistering if they accidentally leak outside a vein into surrounding tissue

xerostomia

dry mouth by increased saliva production, which may occur after radiation therapy to the head and neck or as a med side effect

well-differentiated tumor

a tumor whose cells look similar to normal cells under a microscope, tend to grow and spread more slowly than poorly differentiated tumors