anaplasia

carcinogens

Agents that cause cancer: chemicals and drugs, radiation, and viruses.carcinomaCancerous tumor made up of cells of epithelial origin.

immunotherapy

Cancer treatment using immune cells and antibodies to kill tumor cells

sarcoma

Cancerous tumor derived from connective or flesh tissue.

carcinoma

Cancerous tumor made up of cells of epithelial origin.

mutation

Change in the genetic material (DNA) of a cell; may be caused by chemicals, radiation, or viruses or may occur spontaneously.

antibiotics

Chemotherapeutic drugs found in bacteria and fungi, which cause breaks in DNA strands to inhibit cell division.

radiation

Energy carried by a stream of particles.

invasive

Having the ability to enter and destroy surrounding tissue.

virus

Infectious agent that reproduces by entering a host cell and using the host's genetic material to make copies of itself.

anaplasia

Loss of differentiation of cells; reversion to a more primitive cell type.

modality

Method of treatment, such as surgery, chemotherapy, or irradiation.

neoplasm

New growth; benign or malignant tumor.

benign tumor

Noncancerous growth (neoplasm).

remission

Partial or complete disappearance of symptoms of disease.

genetic screening

Patients and family members are tested to determine whether they have inherited a cancer-causing gene.

apoptosis

Programmed cell death. (Apo- means off, away; -ptosis means to fall.) Normal cells undergo apoptosis when damaged or aging. Some cancer cells have lost the ability to undergo apoptosis, and they live forever.

brachytherapy

Radiotherapy that uses insertion of sealed containers into body cavities or radioactive seeds directly into the tumor.

relapse

Recurrence of tumor after treatment.

radiosensitive tumor

Tumor in which radiation can cause the death of cells without serious damage to surrounding tissue.

metastasis

Spread of a malignant tumor to a secondary site; literally, beyond (meta-) control (-stasis).

staging of tumors

System of evaluating the extent of spread of tumors. An example is the TNM (tumor-node-metastasis) system.

radiotherapy

Treatment of tumors using doses of radiation; radiation oncology.

chemotherapy

Treatment with drugs.

malignant tumor

Tumor having the characteristics of continuous growth, invasiveness, and metastasis.

stereotactic radiosurgery

radiosurgeryTechnique in which a single large dose of radiation is delivered under precise 3D guidance to destroy vascular abnormalities and small brain tumors.