Cancer can be frightening. We have put together a list of terms that we hope will serve as a valuable resource guide while you are researching your cancer diagnosis and undergoing treatment.
Adjuvant Therapy - A treatment method used in addition to the primary therapy. Radiation therapy often is used as an adjuvant to surgery. Chemotherapy can also be considered adjuvant therapy in some cases.
Alopecia - (al-oh-pee-she-ah) Hair loss.
Anesthesia - Loss of feeling or sensation resulting from the use of certain drugs or gases.
Anorexia - Lack of appetite.
Antiemetic - (an-tee-eh-MET-ik) A medicine to prevent or relieve nausea or vomiting.
Benign Tumor - Not cancerous; does not invade nearby tissue or spread to other parts of the body.
Biopsy - The removal of a sample of tissue, which is then examined under a microscope to check for cancer cells. When only a sample of tissue is removed, the procedure is called incisional biopsy; when the whole tumor is removed, it is excisional biopsy. Removing tissue or fluid with a needle is called needle biopsy or needle aspiration.
Blocks - A metal alloy (similar to lead) customized to the individual patient to provide precise blocking around the treatment area.
Bolus - Material (e.g. Vaseline gauze, wet towel or other material) used over the treatment area to enhance the radiation dose to the skin surface.
Boost - Additional dose of radiation to a reduced-size radiation field; not necessarily a higher dose of radiation.
Brachytherapy - (BRAK-ee-THER-ah-pee) Internal radiation achieved by implanting radioactive material directly into the tumor or very close to it. Sometimes called “internal radiation therapy.”
Cancer - A term for diseases in which abnormal cells divide without control. Cancer cells can invade nearby tissue and can spread through the bloodstream and lymphatic system to other parts of the body.
Carcinogen - (kar-SIN-o-jin) A substance or agent that is known to cause cancer.
Catheter - (KATH-e-ter) A thin plastic tube. When a catheter is placed in a vein, it provides a pathway for drugs, nutrients or blood products. Blood samples also can be removed through the catheter. A catheter may also be inserted into the bladder to drain urine.
Chemotherapy - (kee-mo-THER-a-pee) Treatment with anticancer drugs.
Clinical Trials - Research studies that involve patients.
Complete Blood Count - A measure of red blood cells, white blood cells and platelets: red blood cells carry oxygen and nutrients to all your body cells; white blood cells help fight infection; platelets help blood clot.
Cone Down - Reduction of the size of the radiation fields; sometimes referred to as a boost.
CT Scan (Computerized Tomography or CAT Scan) - A type of radiographic study which takes multiple images through the transverse plane of a body region. These images are routinely used in radiation oncology to precisely design the optimal plan of treatment.
Desquamation - Peeling of the skin; sometimes seen as an effect of radiation therapy.
Diagnostic X-ray - Low-energy X-rays generally used to diagnose a problem (e.g., chest X-ray, barium, swallow, CAT scan).
Dietitian - (also registered dietitian; also nutritionist) A professional who plans diets for proper nutrition.
Dosimetrist - (do-SIM-uh-trist) A person who plans and calculates the proper radiation dose for treatment.
Electron beam - A stream of particles with limited depth of penetration that produces high-energy radiation to treat cancer.
External Radiation - Radiation therapy that uses a machine located outside of the body to aim high-energy X-rays at cancer cells.
Fraction - The daily dose of radiation.
Hyperfractionated Radiation - Division of the total dose of radiation into smaller doses that are given more than once a day.
Implants - Radioactive material placed in or near a cancer.
Informed Consent - The written explanation detailing your treatment, potential side effects and the risks and benefits of treatment. In signing this document, you give your informed consent to receive treatment.
Internal Radiation / Brachytherapy - Internal radiation achieved by implanting radioactive material directly into the tumor or very close to it.
Intracavitary Radiation - A radioactive (implant) placed in a body cavity such as the chest cavity or the vagina.
Linear Accelerator - A machine that creates high-energy radiation to treat cancers, using electricity to form a stream of fast-moving subatomic particles. Also called mega-voltage (MeV) linear accelerator or a linac.
Malignant - (ma-LIG-nant) Cancerous.
Medical Oncologist - A doctor who specializes in using chemotherapy to treat cancer.
Metastasis - (meh-TAS-ta-sis) The spread of cancer from one part of the body to another. Cells in the metastatic (secondary) tumor are like those in the original (primary) tumor.
Oncologist - A doctor who specializes in treating cancer. Can be a surgical, medical or radiation oncologist.
Oncology - The study of tumors.
Palliative Care - Treatment to relieve, rather than cure, symptoms caused by cancer. Palliative care can help people live more comfortably.
Photon Beam Radiation Therapy - A form of external radiation from a linear accelerator capable of treating tumors located in deep sites in the body
Platelets - Special blood cells that help stop bleeding.
Port Film - A radiograph (X-ray) taken on the radiation treatment machine to verify the radiation treatment field.
Positioning Device - Device which aids in positioning and duplicating the patient’s position from day to day. May be custom-made for the individual patient.
Rad - Short form of “radiation absorbed dose”; a measurement of the amount of radiation absorbed by tissues (100 rad = 1 gray or 1 rad = 1 centigray).
Radiation - Energy carried by waves or a stream of particles.
Radiation Field / Portal - The area to which radiation is being delivered.
Radiation Oncologist - A doctor who specializes in using radiation to treat cancer.
Radiation Physicist - A person trained to ensure that the radiation machine delivers the right amount of radiation to the treatment site.
Radiation Therapist - A person with specialized training who runs the equipment that delivers the radiation; the person who actually treats the patient on a daily basis.
Radiation Therapy - The use of high-energy penetrating X-rays or subatomic particles to treat disease. Types of radiation include X-ray, electron beams, alpha and beta particles and gamma rays. Radioactive substances include cobalt, radium, iridium, cesium, palladium and iodine. (See brachytherapy, and X-ray).
Radiotherapy - See radiation therapy.
Simulation - A process involving special X-ray pictures that are used to plan radiation treatment so that the area to be treated is precisely located and marked.
Simulator - A special machine that looks like a linear accelerator and is used for simulation.
Treatment Port or Field - The place on the body at which the radiation beam is aimed.
Tumor - An abnormal mass of tissue. Tumors are either benign or malignant.
Virtual Simulation - The process by which a detailed 3D model of a patient is built from a sequence of dozens or sometimes hundreds of closely spaced transverse CT (or MRI) images. Since the gray levels of the CT images are directly related to the density of tissue, the computer model can be used to calculate the image that would be produced on a piece of film by a conventional diagnostic X-ray machine. This calculated image is called a Digitally Reconstructed Radiography (DRR).
White Blood Cells - Cells that help the body fight infection and disease.
X-rays - High-energy radiation used in low doses to diagnose disease or injury, and in high doses to treat cancer.