Cancer Treatments and Nursing Safety Vocabulary Flashcards

Vocabulary flashcards covering cancer treatment modalities, nursing precautions, radiation therapy, and surgical interventions based on the lecture transcript.

Hormone therapy

A cancer treatment that decreases specific hormone levels in order to slow progression or stop the growth of hormone-dependent cancer cells.

Bone marrow transplantation

A procedure using stem cells to shut down and replace a patient's old immune system.

Chemotherapy

A treatment that targets rapidly dividing cells throughout the body, causing systemic effects.

Targeted therapy

A treatment specifically designed to target and kill only designated rapidly dividing cells while minimizing damage to other tissue.

Immunotherapy

A treatment that boosts the immune system so it works better at killing abnormal cells.

Extravasation

The accidental movement or leakage of caustic chemotherapy medication outside of the blood vessels, leading to tissue damage, pain, swelling, and risk of infection.

Chemo gloves

Specialized gloves that are thicker than regular gloves, worn as personal protective equipment when handling chemotherapy agents or patient waste.

Radiation therapy

A localized cancer treatment that causes damage to cell structures so they cannot reproduce.

Internal radiation therapy

A treatment modality where a radioactive source is delivered inside the body through an implant, catheter, or ingested substance (such as radiated iodine for thyroid cancer).

Radiation detector

A device worn by radiology healthcare workers to measure and track the amount of radiation exposure over time.

Debulking

The partial surgical removal of a tumor to decrease symptoms and pain, and to improve the effectiveness of subsequent treatments such as chemotherapy.

BRCA gene

A genetic marker that, when positive, indicates a high risk for cancer and may prompt preventative surgical removal of tissue.

Reconstruction

Surgical procedures performed after tumor removal to restore appearance or improve function, such as breast reconstruction or testicular prosthesis placement.