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Glossary
Select a letter to view its corresponding terms:
A | B | C | D
| E | F | G
| H | I | L
| M | N | O
| P| Q | R | S
| T | U
- Acute:
- Symptoms or signs that begin and worsen quickly; not chronic.
- Adjuvant Therapy:
- Another treatment used together with the primary treatment. Its purpose is to assist the primary treatment.
- Age-Specific PSA Reference Range:
- A range used to compare the results of men in the same age group. If a man's PSA level is high compared to others in his age group, then there is a higher chance that prostate cancer could be present.
- Alkaline Phosphatase:
- A naturally occurring enzyme in the body released in larger amounts when bone is being formed. High levels indicate bone tissue formed at an abnormally high rate. Blood tests that detect high levels of alkaline phosphatase are one of the standard methods used to diagnose bone metastases.
- Alkylating Agent:
- A drug that is used in the treatment of cancer. It interferes with the cell's DNA and inhibits cancer cell growth.
- Amyloidosis:
- A group of diseases in which protein is deposited in specific organs (localized amyloidosis) or throughout the body (systemic amyloidosis). Amyloidosis may be either primary (with no known cause) or secondary (caused by another disease, including some types of cancer). Generally, primary amyloidosis affects the nerves, skin, tongue, joints, heart, and liver; secondary amyloidosis often affects the spleen, kidneys, liver, and adrenal glands.
- Analgesic:
- A drug that reduces pain. Analgesics include aspirin, acetaminophen, and ibuprofen.
- Anemia:
- A condition in which the number of red blood cells is below normal.
- Anesthesia:
- Drugs or substances that cause loss of feeling or awareness. Local anesthetics cause loss of feeling in a part of the body. General anesthetics put the person to sleep.
- Anesthetic:
- A substance that causes loss of feeling or awareness. Local anesthetics cause loss of feeling in a part of the body. General anesthetics put the person to sleep.
- Angiogenesis Inhibitors:
- A substance that may prevent the formation of blood vessels.
In anticancer therapy, an angiogenesis inhibitor prevents
the growth of blood vessels from surrounding tissue to a solid
tumor.
- Angiogenesis Therapy:
- Currently an area of much experimental research, angiogenesis therapy seeks to prevent or treat metastatic cancer via drugs that prevent the formation of new blood vessels that cancers need to grow and spread.
- Angiogenesis:
- Blood vessel formation. Tumor angiogenesis is the growth of blood vessels from surrounding tissue to a solid tumor. This is caused by the release of chemicals by the tumor.
- Antiandrogren Drug:
- A drug that blocks the activity of an androgen hormone.
- Antibiotics:
- Drugs used to treat infection.
- Antibody:
- A type of protein made by plasma cells (a type of white blood cell) in response to an antigen (foreign substance). Each antibody can bind to only one specific antigen. The purpose of this binding is to help destroy the antigen. Antibodies can work in several ways, depending on the nature of the antigen. Some antibodies destroy antigens directly. Others make it easier for white blood cells to destroy the antigen.
- Anticancer Drug:
- A drug that attacks cancer cells.
- Antiestrogen:
- A substance that blocks the activity of estrogens, the
family of hormones that promote the development and maintenance
of female sex characteristics.
- Antigen:
- A substance that causes the immune system to make a specific
immune response.
- Antineoplastic Agent:
- A drug that prevents, kills, or blocks the growth and spread
of cancer cells.
- Apoptosis:
- A type of cell death in which a series of molecular steps
in a cell leads to its death. This is the body's normal way
of getting rid of unneeded or abnormal cells. The process
of apoptosis may be blocked in cancer cells. Also called programmed
cell death.
- Asymptomatic Myeloma:
- Myeloma that presents no signs or symptoms of disease.
Also called indolent, smoldering, or early myeloma.
- Atypical Hyperplasia:
- A benign (non-cancerous) condition in which cells look
abnormal under a microscope and are increased in number.
- Axillary Dissection:
- Surgery to remove lymph nodes found in the armpit region.
Also called axillary lymph node dissection.
- B Cells:
- White blood cells that develop into plasma cells in the
bone marrow and are the source of antibodies. Also known as
B-lymphocytes.
- Basophil:
- A type of white blood cell. Basophils are granulocytes.
- Benign:
- Not cancerous. Benign tumors do not spread to tissues around
them or to other parts of the body.
- Beta 2 Microglobulin (b2M):
- A small protein found in the blood. High levels occur in
patients with active myeloma. Low or normal levels occur in
patients with early myeloma and/or inactive disease. Approximately
10% of patients have myeloma that does not produce b2M. For
these patients, b2M testing cannot be used to monitor the
disease. At the time of relapse, b2M can increase before there
is any change in the myeloma protein level. Therefore, 90%
of the time, b2M is very useful for determining disease activity.
- Bilateral Extracapsular Extension:
- The spread of a tumor outside the tissue surrounding the
prostate, on both sides.
- Biological Response Modifiers
(BRMs):
- Treatment to stimulate or restore the ability of the immune
system to fight infections and other diseases. Also used to
lessen certain side effects that may be caused by cancer treatment.
Also called immunotherapy, biotherapy, or biological therapy.
- Biopsy:
- The removal of cells or tissues for examination by a pathologist.
The pathologist may study the tissue under a microscope or
perform other tests on the cells or tissue. When only a sample
of tissue is removed, the procedure is called an incisional
biopsy. When an entire lump or suspicious area is removed,
the procedure is called an excisional biopsy. When a sample
of tissue or fluid is removed with a needle, the procedure
is called a needle biopsy, core biopsy, or fine-needle aspiration.
- Bisphosphonates:
- A type of drug used to treat osteoporosis and the bone
pain caused by some types of cancer. Also called diphosphonate.
- Bladder:
- The organ that stores urine.
- Blastic:
- A bone lesion or tumor that is denser than ordinary bone
and thus appears as a white area on an X-ray. Blastic lesions
are common with prostate cancer patients. A.k.a. osteoblastic.
- Blood Cells:
- Minute structures produced in the bone marrow; they consist
of red blood cells, white blood cells, and platelets.
- Blood Count:
- A test to check the number of red blood cells, white blood
cells, and platelets in a sample of blood. Also called complete
blood count (CBC)
- Bone Biopsy:
- A type of biopsy in which a surgeon removes an entire bone
tumor (excisional biopsy) or a small part of a large tumor
(incisional biopsy) in order to diagnose or rule out cancer.
- Bone Marrow Aspiration:
- The removal of a small sample of bone marrow (usually from
the hip) through a needle for examination under a microscope.
- Bone Marrow Biopsy:
- The removal of a sample of tissue from the bone marrow
with a needle for examination under a microscope.
- Bone Marrow Donor:
- A person who donates healthy bone marrow to a patient who
has had high-dose cancer treatment. The patient is given the
donor's healthy marrow during a bone marrow transplant
- Bone Marrow Transplantation:
- A procedure to replace bone marrow that has been destroyed
by treatment with high doses of anticancer drugs or radiation.
Transplantation may be autologous (an individual's own marrow
saved before treatment), allogeneic (marrow donated by someone
else), or syngeneic (marrow donated by an identical twin).
- Bone Marrow:
- The soft, sponge-like tissue in the center of most bones.
It produces white blood cells, red blood cells, and platelets.
- Bone Metastases:
- Cancer that has spread from the original (primary) tumor
to the bone.
- Bone Scan:
- A technique to create images of bones on a computer screen
or on film. A small amount of radioactive material is injected
into a blood vessel and travels through the bloodstream; it
collects in the bones and is detected by a scanner.
- Brachytherapy:
- A procedure in which radioactive material sealed in needles,
seeds, wires, or catheters is placed directly into or near
a tumor. Also called internal radiation, implant radiation,
or interstitial radiation therapy.
- Breast Conservation Therapy:
- Surgery to remove a breast cancer and a small amount of
benign tissue around the cancer, without removing any other
part of the breast. This procedure is also called lumpectomy,
segmental excision, or limited breast surgery. The method
may require an axillary dissection and usually requires radiation
therapy in addition to the breast conservation surgery.
- Breast Reconstruction:
- Surgery to rebuild the shape of the breast after a mastectomy.
- Breast-Conserving Surgery (BCS):
- An operation to remove the breast cancer but not the breast
itself. Types of breast-conserving surgery include lumpectomy
(removal of the lump), quadrantectomy (removal of one quarter,
or quadrant, of the breast), and segmental mastectomy (removal
of the cancer as well as some of the breast tissue around
the tumor and the lining over the chest muscles below the
tumor). Also called breast-sparing surgery.
- Cancer:
- A term for diseases in which abnormal cells divide without
control. Cancer cells can invade nearby tissues and can spread
through the bloodstream and lymphatic system to other parts
of the body. There are several main types of cancer. Carcinoma
is cancer that begins in the skin or in tissues that line
or cover internal organs. Sarcoma is cancer that begins in
bone, cartilage, fat, muscle, blood vessels, or other connective
or supportive tissue. Leukemia is cancer that starts in blood-forming
tissue such as the bone marrow, and causes large numbers of
abnormal blood cells to be produced and enter the bloodstream.
Lymphoma and multiple myeloma are cancers that begin in the
cells of the immune system.
- Carcinogen:
- Any substance that causes cancer.
- CAT (Computerized Axial Tomography)
Scan:
- A series of detailed pictures of areas inside the body,
taken from different angles; the pictures are created by a
computer linked to an x-ray machine. Also called computerized
axial tomography, computed tomography (CT scan), or computerized
tomography.
- Cell Proliferation:
- An increase in the number of cells as a result of cell
growth and cell division.
- Chemotherapy:
- Treatment with anticancer drugs.
- Conformal Proton Beam Radiation
Therapy:
- A type of radiation therapy that uses protons generated
by a special machine. A proton is a type of high-energy radiation
that is different from an x-ray.
- Dexa (Dual Photon
X-Ray Absorptionmetry) Study:
- Measures the amount of bone loss; the best measure of bone
density.
- Digital Rectal Examination (DRE):
- An examination in which a doctor inserts a lubricated,
gloved finger into the rectum to feel for abnormalities.
- Ductal Carcinoma In Situ (DCIS):
- A noninvasive, precancerous condition in which abnormal
cells are found in the lining of a breast duct. The abnormal
cells have not spread outside the duct to other tissues in
the breast. In some cases, ductal carcinoma in situ may become
invasive cancer and spread to other tissues, although it is
not known at this time how to predict which lesions will become
invasive. Also called intraductal carcinoma.
- Edema:
- Swelling caused by excess fluid in body tissues.
- Efficacy:
- Effectiveness. In medicine, the ability of an intervention
(for example, a drug or surgery) to produce the desired beneficial
effect.
- Electrophoresis:
- A laboratory test in which a patient's serum molecules
are subjected to separation according to their size and electrical
charge. For myeloma patients, electrophoresis of the blood
allows both the calculation of the amount of myeloma protein
(M-protein) as well as the identification of the specific
M-spike characteristic for each patient. Electrophoresis is
used as a tool both for diagnosis and for monitoring.
- Erythropoietin:
- A substance that is naturally produced by the kidneys,
and that stimulates the bone marrow to make red blood cells.
When erythropoietin is made in the laboratory, it is called
epoetin alfa or epoetin beta.
- Estrogen:
- A hormone that promotes the development and maintenance
of female sex characteristics.
- Excisional Biopsy:
- A surgical procedure in which an entire lump or suspicious
area is removed for diagnosis. The tissue is then examined
under a microscope.
- Fibroadenoma:
- A type of benign breast tumor composed of fibrous tissue
and glandular tissue. On clinical examination or breast self-examination,
it usually feels like a firm, round, smooth lump. These usually
occur in young women.
- Fibrocystic Changes:
- A common condition marked by benign (noncancerous) changes
in breast tissue. These changes may include irregular lumps
or cysts, breast discomfort, sensitive nipples and itching.
These symptoms may change throughout the menstrual cycle and
usually stop after menopause. Also called benign breast disease,
fibrocystic breast changes and mammary dysplasia.
- Fine Needle Aspiration (FNA):
- The removal of tissue or fluid with a needle for examination
under a microscope. Also called a needle biopsy.
- Gene:
- The functional and physical unit of heredity passed from
parent to offspring. Genes are pieces of DNA, and most genes
contain the information for making a specific protein.
- Gleason Score:
- A system of grading prostate cancer cells based on how
they look under a microscope. Gleason scores range from 2
to 10 and indicate how likely it is that a tumor will spread.
A low Gleason score means the cancer cells are similar to
normal prostate cells and are less likely to spread; a high
Gleason score means the cancer cells are very different from
normal and are more likely to spread.
- Granulocyte:
- A type of white blood cell that kills bacteria. Neutrophils,
eosinophils, and basophils are granulocytes.
- Gynecomastia:
- Enlargement and tenderness of breast tissue in males.
- Hematocrit
(Hct):
- The percentage of red blood cells in the blood. A low hematocrit
measurement indicates anemia.
- High-Dose Rate Brachytherapy:
- A type of radiation therapy in which radioactive seeds
are temporarily placed directly inside the prostate. The seeds
contain more radioactive material than in standard brachytherapy,
and can be removed in less than a day. This procedure may
not require hospitalization.
- Hormone Receptor
Test:
- A test to measure the amount of certain proteins, called
hormone receptors, in cancer tissue. Hormones can attach to
these proteins. A high level of hormone receptors may mean
that hormones help the cancer grow.
- Hormone Therapy:
- Treatment that adds, blocks or removes hormones. For certain
conditions (such as diabetes or menopause), hormones are given
to adjust low hormone levels. To slow or stop the growth of
certain cancers (such as prostate and breast cancer), synthetic
hormones or other drugs may be given to block the body's natural
hormones. Sometimes surgery is needed to remove the gland
that makes hormones. Also called hormonal therapy, hormone
treatment, or endocrine therapy.
- Hormones:
- A chemical made by glands in the body. Hormones circulate
in the bloodstream and control the actions of certain cells
or organs. Some hormones can also be made in a laboratory.
- Hot Flash:
- A sudden, temporary onset of body warmth, flushing, and
sweating (often associated with menopause).
- Human Leukocyte Antigen (HLA)
Test:
- A blood test used to match a blood or bone marrow donor
to a recipient for transfusion or transplant.
- Human Leukocyte Antigen (HLA):
- One of a group of proteins found on the surface of white
blood cells and other cells that play an important part in
the body's immune response to foreign substances. These antigens
vary from person to person, and an HLA test is done before
organ transplantation to find out if tissues match between
a donor and a recipient. Also called human lymphocyte antigen.
- IgG, IgA:
- The two most common types of myeloma. The G and the A refer
to the type of protein produced by the myeloma cells. The
myeloma protein, which is an immunoglobulin, consists of two
heavy chains, (for example of a G type) combined with two
light chains, which are either kappa or lambda. Therefore,
the two most common subtypes of myeloma have identical heavy
chains (i.e. IgG kappa and IgG lambda). The kappa and lambda
light chains can be produced alone resulting in either kappa
or lambda light chain (Bence Jones) myeloma. The terms heavy
and light refer to the size or molecular weight of the protein,
with the heavy chains being larger than the light chains.
Since the light chains are smaller, they are more likely to
leak out into the urine, resulting in urine Bence Jones protein.
- Immune System:
- The complex group of organs and cells that defends the
body against infections and other diseases.
- Immunodeficiency:
- The decreased ability of the body to fight infection and
disease.
- Induction Therapy:
- Treatment designed to be used as a first step toward shrinking
the cancer and in evaluating response to drugs and other agents.
Induction therapy is followed by additional therapy to eliminate
whatever cancer remains.
- LDH:
- Lactate dehydrogenase. One of a group of enzymes found
in the blood and other body tissues, and involved in energy
production in cells. An increased amount in the blood may
be a sign of tissue damage and some types of cancer or other
diseases. Also called lactic acid dehydrogenase.
- Lesion:
- An area of abnormal tissue. A lesion may be benign (noncancercous)
or malignant (cancerous).
- Localized Pain:
- Pain felt at the site of a bone metastasis.
- Lumpectomy:
- Surgery to remove the tumor and a small amount of normal
tissue around it.
- Lymph Node:
- A rounded mass of lymphatic tissue that is surrounded by
a capsule of connective tissue. Lymph nodes filter lymph (lymphatic
fluid), and they store lymphocytes (white blood cells). They
are located along lymphatic vessels. Also called a lymph gland.
- Magnetic Resonance
Imaging (MRI):
- A procedure in which radio waves and a powerful magnet
linked to a computer are used to create detailed pictures
of areas inside the body. These pictures can show the difference
between normal and diseased tissue. MRI makes better images
of organs and soft tissue than other scanning techniques,
such as CT or x-ray. MRI is especially useful for imaging
the brain, spine, the soft tissue of joints, and the inside
of bones. Also called nuclear magnetic resonance imaging.
- Maintenance Therapy:
- Treatment that is given to help a primary (original) treatment
keep working. Maintenance therapy is often given to help keep
cancer in remission.
- Malignant:
- Cancerous. Malignant tumors can invade and destroy nearby
tissue and spread to other parts of the body.
- Mastectomy:
- Surgery to remove the breast (or as much of the breast
tissue as possible).
- Metastasize (Metastases, Metastasized,
Metastasizes, Metastasizing, Metastatic):
- To spread from one part of the body to another. When cancer
cells metastasize and form secondary tumors, the cells in
the metastatic tumor are like those in the original (primary)
tumor.
- Modified Radical Mastectomy:
- Surgery for breast cancer in which the breast, most or
all of the lymph nodes under the arm, and the lining over
the chest muscles are removed. Sometimes the surgeon also
removes part of the chest wall muscles.
- Myelosuppression:
- A condition in which bone marrow activity is decreased,
resulting in fewer red blood cells, white blood cells and
platelets. Myelosuppression is a side effect of some cancer
treatments. When myelosuppression is severe, it is called
myeloablation.
- Narcotic:
- An agent that causes insensibility or stupor; usually refers to opioids given to relieve pain.
- Needle Biopsy:
- The removal of tissue or fluid with a needle for examination
under a microscope. Also called fine-needle aspiration.
- Neoadjuvant Therapy:
- Treatment given before the primary treatment. Examples
of neoadjuvant therapy include chemotherapy, radiation therapy
and hormone therapy.
- Neoplasm (Neoplasia):
- An abnormal mass of tissue that results when cells divide
more than they should or do not die when they should. Tumors
may be benign (not cancerous), or malignant (cancerous). Also
called tumor.
- Opioid:
- A synthetic drug that is used to treat moderate to severe pain. Opioids are similar to opiates such as morphine and codeine.
- Osteoblast:
- The cell that produces osteoid, which becomes mineralized
with calcium to form new hard bone.
- Osteoclast:
- A cell found in the bone marrow at the junction between
the bone marrow and the bone. Active myeloma growth stimulates
the osteoclast to destroy bone. This process is called resorption.
Normally bone resorption is counterbalanced by the activity
of osteoblasts, which create new bone. In myeloma, osteoblast
activity is blocked. The combination of accelerated bone resorption
and blocked new bone formation results in lytic lesions.
- Osteoid:
- The protein product that becomes mineralized with calcium
to form hard bones.
- Palliative
Therapy:
- Treatment given to relieve the symptoms and reduce the
suffering caused by cancer and other life-threatening diseases.
Palliative cancer therapies are given together with other
cancer treatments, from the time of diagnosis, through treatment,
survivorship, recurrent or advanced disease, and at the end
of life.
- Palpation:
- Examination by pressing on the surface of the body to feel
the organs or tissues underneath.
- Partial Mastectomy:
- The removal of cancer as well as some of the breast tissue
around the tumor and the lining over the chest muscles below
the tumor. Usually some of the lymph nodes under the arm are
also taken out. Also called segmental mastectomy.
- PET (Positron Emission Tomography)
Scan:
- A procedure in which a small amount of radioactive glucose
(sugar) is injected into a vein, and a scanner is used to
make detailed, computerized pictures of areas inside the body
where the glucose is used. Because cancer cells often use
more glucose than normal cells, the pictures can be used to
find cancer cells in the body.
- Plasmacytoma:
- A type of cancer that begins in plasma cells (white blood
cells that produce antibodies). A plasmacytoma may turn into
multiple myeloma.
- Plasmapheresis:
- The process of separating certain cells from the plasma
in the blood by a machine; only the cells are returned to
the person. Plasmapheresis can be used to remove excess antibodies
from the blood.
- Platelet:
- A type of blood cell that helps prevent bleeding by causing
blood clots to form. Also called a thrombocyte.
- Precancerous:
- A term used to describe a condition that may, or is likely
to become, cancer. Also called premalignant .
- Primary Cancer:
- The first location where cancer develops in the body.
- Progressive Disease:
- Cancer that is growing, spreading, or getting worse.
- Prostate:
- A gland in the male reproductive system. The prostate surrounds
the part of the urethra (the tube that empties the bladder)
just below the bladder, and produces a fluid that forms part
of the semen.
- Prostatectomy:
- An operation to remove part or all of the prostate. Radical
(or total) prostatectomy is the removal of the entire prostate
and some of the tissue around it.
- Prostate-Specific Antigen
(PSA):
- A substance produced by the prostate that may be found
in an increased amount in the blood of men who have prostate
cancer, benign prostatic hyperplasia, or infection or inflammation
of the prostate.
- Prostate-Specific Membrane Antigen
(PSMA):
- A PSA produced by the membrane of the prostate cancer cells.
A transmembrane protein that may be used as an important market
associated with prostate cancer.
- Quadrantectomy:
- Surgical removal of the region of the breast (approximately
one quarter) containing cancer.
- Radiation Therapy:
- The use of high-energy radiation from x-rays, gamma rays,
neutrons, and other sources to kill cancer cells and shrink
tumors. Radiation may come from a machine outside the body
(external-beam radiation therapy), or it may come from radioactive
material placed in the body near cancer cells (internal radiation
therapy, implant radiation, or brachytherapy). Systemic radiation
therapy uses a radioactive substance, such as a radiolabeled
monoclonal antibody, that circulates throughout the body.
Also called radiotherapy.
- Radiologist:
- A doctor who specializes in creating and interpreting pictures
of areas inside the body. The pictures are produced with x-rays,
sound waves, or other types of energy.
- Radiopharmaceutical:
- A drug containing a radioactive substance that is used
in the diagnosis and treatment of cancer and in pain management
of bone metastases. Also called a radioactive drug.
- Recurrence:
- Cancer that has returned after a period of time during
which the cancer could not be detected. The cancer may come
back to the same place as the original (primary) tumor or
to another place in the body. Also called recurrent cancer.
- Regression:
- A decrease in the size of a tumor or in the extent of cancer
in the body.
- Relapse:
- The return of signs and symptoms of cancer after a period
of improvement.
- Remission Or Response:
- A decrease in or disappearance of signs and symptoms of
cancer. In partial remission, some, but not all, signs and
symptoms of cancer have disappeared. In complete remission,
all signs and symptoms of cancer have disappeared, although
cancer still may be in the body.
- Complete Remission (CR):
- The disappearance of all signs of cancer in response to
treatment. This does not always mean the cancer has been cured.
Also called a complete response.
- Partial Remission (PR):
- A decrease in the size of a tumor, or in the extent of
cancer in the body, in response to treatment. Also called
partial response.
- Retropubic Prostatectomy:
- Surgery to remove the prostate through an incision made
in the abdominal wall.
- Secondary Bone
Cancer:
- Cancer that has spread (metastasized) to the bones.
- Simple Mastectomy:
- Removal of the breast. Also called total mastectomy.
- Stage:
- The extent of a cancer within the body. If the cancer has
spread, the stage describes how far it has spread from the
original site to other parts of the body.
- Staging:
- Performing exams and tests to learn the extent of the cancer
within the body, especially whether the disease has spread
from the original site to other parts of the body. It is important
to know the stage of the disease in order to plan the best
treatment.
- Stereotactic Needle Biopsy:
- A biopsy procedure that uses a computer and a three-dimensional
scanning device to find a tumor site and guide the removal
of tissue for examination under a microscope.
- Steroid:
- A type of drug used to relieve swelling and inflammation.
Some steroid drugs may also have anti-tumor effects.
- Targeted Radiopharmaceutical:
- A drug that contains a radioactive ingredient that is used
to target the cells that are affected by cancer while minimizing
the impact on normal cells.
- Total Mastectomy:
- Removal of the breast. Also called simple mastectomy.
- Toxins:
- Poisons produced by certain animals, plants, or bacteria.
- Transrectal Ultrasound (TRUS):
- A procedure in which a probe that sends out high-energy
sound waves is inserted into the rectum. The sound waves are
bounced off internal tissues or organs and make echoes. The
echoes form a picture of body tissue called a sonogram. TRUS
is used to look for abnormalities in the rectum and nearby
structures, including the prostate. Also called endorectal
ultrasound.
- Transurethral Resection of the
Prostate or TURP:
- Surgical procedure to remove tissue from the prostate using
an instrument inserted through the urethra.
- Tumor Marker:
- A substance sometimes found in the blood, other body fluids,
or tissues. A high level of tumor marker may mean that a certain
type of cancer is in the body. Examples of tumor markers include
CA 125 (ovarian cancer), CA 15-3 (breast cancer), CEA (ovarian,
lung, breast, pancreas, and gastrointestinal tract cancers),
and PSA (prostate cancer). Also called biomarker.
- Tumor:
- An abnormal mass of tissue that results when cells divide
more than they should or do not die when they should. Tumors
may be benign (not cancerous), or malignant (cancerous). Also
called neoplasm.
- Ultrasound:
- A procedure in which high-energy sound waves (ultrasound)
are bounced off internal tissues or organs and make echoes.
The echo patterns are shown on the screen of an ultrasound
machine, forming a picture of body tissues called a sonogram.
Also called ultrasonography.
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