ACUTE Having a sudden, severe and short course.
ADENOCARCINOMA A malignant tumour (cancer) that began in gland cells or glandular cells lining a body cavity.
ADENOMA A benign (not malignant) tumour in which the cells are derived from glands or from glandular epithelium such as the lining of the stomach.
ANAEMIA A blood condition with reduced numbers of red blood cells and/or a reduced amount of haemoglobin.
Pernicious anaemia A type of anaemia resulting from a failure of gastric mucosa (stomach lining) to produce a vital ingredient for making blood called ‘intrinsic factor’.
ANALOGUE A drug that differs in minor ways from its original compound.
ANOREXIA A feeling of not wanting to eat (lack of hunger).
ANTIBODY A particle manufactured in the immune system to defend the body against a harmful invading organism or particle called an antigen.
ARTERIOGRAM A radiograph (X-ray photograph) of an artery taken after injection of a radio-opaque substance (dye) into the artery.
ASBESTOS A fibrous silicate material that was mined for use in building and other industries. It is now known to be dangerous and if inhaled can cause mesothelioma or lung cancer.
ASPIRATION The act of sucking up or sucking out.
ASTROCYTOMA A malignant tumour of connective tissue cells in the brain.
ATROPHIC Wasted. Degenerate. Showing a loss of special qualities.
AXILLA Armpit.
BACTERIA Germs.
BARIUM Barium meal A chalky, porridge-like substance containing the radio-opaque element barium, which is swallowed to allow radiographs to be taken that enable the outline, size and shape of organs such as the stomach or duodenum to be seen on X-ray films or on an X-ray screen.
Barium swallow Similar to a barium meal except that as the material is swallowed, X-ray films and screening of the oesophagus allow the shape and outline of the oesophagus to be studied.
Barium enema Similar to a barium meal except the material is passed via a tube through the anus to allow X-ray films and screening of the rectum and large bowel.
BASAL Basic. The lowest or foundation part of a structure. The basal layer of skin cells consists of the deeper cells from which the surface cells grow.
BCC Basal-cell carcinoma. A slow-growing skin cancer that grows from the deep (basal) layer of skin cells.
BCG Bacille Calmette-Guérin. A preparation originally used as an active immunising agent against tuberculosis. It consists of harmless living organisms that promote a similar body-defence action to that of tuberculosis bacteria.
BENIGN Not malignant. Favourable for recovery. Unlikely to be dangerous.
BENIGN MAMMARY DYSPLASIA A condition of the breasts that is likely to cause cysts and other benign lumps in the breasts.
BIOPSY The removal of a small sample of body tissue for microscopic examination.
BUCCAL MUCOSA The lining of the cheek in the mouth.
CANCER A malignant, continuous, purposeless, unwanted and uncontrolled growth of cells.
CAPSULE The fibrous or membranous sac-like covering that encloses a tissue or an organ.
CARCINOGEN A substance that causes cancer.
CERVIX UTERI The neck of the uterus. The entrance of the womb.
CHEMOTHERAPY Treatment with chemical agents or drugs.
CHRONIC Persisting for a long time. Having a long or protracted course.
CHRONIC ATROPHIC GASTRITIS A gradual and persistent degeneration of the lining of the stomach.
CISPLATINUM A commonly used anti-cancer agent derived from the metal platinum. It binds DNA in cancer cells, causing DNA breaks and cell death. It is effective in treating a broad range of cancers, including breast, lung and head and neck cancers, especially when used in combination with other anti-cancer agents. Likely to cause nausea and vomiting, and can cause kidney damage if not used judiciously.
CONGENITAL Present from the time of birth.
CORTISONE A naturally occurring steroid hormone secreted by the adrenal gland.
CORYNEBACTERIUM PARVUM A harmless bacterium sometimes used to stimulate immune body-defence reactions.
CROHN’S DISEASE This name applies to granular colitis, an infection affecting the large bowel, and to a similar inflammatory condition that may affect the small intestine. The condition was first described by Dr Crohn.
CT (COMPUTERISED TOMOGRAPHY) SCAN A method of visualising body tissues by using special computerised radiographic techniques to give X-ray ‘pictures’ of sections of body tissues.
CYBERKNIFE A new form of radiotherapy that is basically an advanced linear accelarator that rotates around a tumour region focusing the irradiation onto a limited area containing the tumour.
CYTOKINES Protein materials released from cells when activated by antigens. Cytokines are involved in cell-to-cell communication enhancing immune reactions through specific cell-surface responses on white cells.
CYTOTOXIC Having a toxic or harmful effect upon cells.
DEXAMETHASONE A corticosteroid used mainly in treating allergic reactions.
DNA Deoxyribonucleic acid. The material from which the body-building genes and chromosomes are made.
ENDOSCOPE An instrument used for visual examination of the interior of hollow organs or the interior of body cavities.
EPIDEMIOLOGY The branch of medicine dealing with the distribution, incidence, causes and spread of diseases.
EPITHELIUM Tissue that forms a body-surface lining, such as a skin surface or the lining of a hollow organ that opens onto a body surface such as the lining of the mouth, bladder, bowel or vagina.
FAECES Stool.
FAMILIAL POLYPOSIS COLI An inherited condition in which about half of the members of a family will develop polyps (small tumours) in the wall of the large bowel. Eventually one or more of these will become malignant.
FASCIA Superficial fascia The fatty layer under the skin.
Fascia or deep fascia The fibrous or membranous layer of tissue that covers muscles, nerves and blood vessels, or separates muscles or other tissues into different compartments.
FIBROMA A benign tumour composed of fibrous tissues and fibrous tissue-forming cells.
FLOOR OF MOUTH The lower part of the mouth under the tongue.
GASTROSCOPE An instrument used for visual examination of the interior of the stomach.
GENOME The total genetic material in an organism, comprising the genes contained in its chromosomes.
GLAND A tissue or organ that manufactures and secretes chemical substances necessary for the maintenance of normal health and body function.
GLUCAN A complex carbohydrate (type of sugar) that constitutes much of the fibre in common vegetable and grain foodstuffs, which has been found to have immune stimulatory properties.
GOITRE Enlargement of the thyroid gland causing a swelling in the front part of the neck.
GRANULOCYTE COLONY-STIMULATING FACTOR (G CSF) A growth factor or cytokine produced by tissues to stimulate the bone-marrow granuloctyes and stem cells.
HERCEPTIN A brand of human monoclonal antibody derived from DNA. It selectively targets cells with a certain human growth-factor protein on the cell surface.
HRT (HORMONE-REPLACEMENT THERAPY) Treatment with a low dose of hormones to reduce menopausal and post-menopausal symptoms and other problems such as loss of calcium from bones.
HYPERKERATOSIS A thickening of the flat protective surface layer of the epithelium of skin or lip. The condition is usually characterised by the formation of a crust or flakes that drop off. There can be a tendency for malignant changes to appear gradually, and cancer may develop.
IMMUNOTHERAPY The treatment of disease by giving immune substances or by stimulating the immune system of body defences.
INDURATION The hardening or thickening of a tissue or a part of the body as a local reaction due to inflammation or infiltration with cancer cells.
KAPOSI’S SARCOMA A malignant tumour that has developed in the blood vessels in skin. It appears as dark purple patches or nodules.
LESION An area of abnormal tissue with impaired function due to disease or injury.
LEUCOCYTE White cell. The ‘white’ or colourless type of cell that circulates in the blood, has amoeboid movement and is chiefly concerned with defending the body against invasion of foreign organisms or bacteria.
LEUKOPLAKIA White patch. A disease distinguished by the presence of white thickened patches in the mucous membranes, commonly in the mouth. There may be a tendency for malignant characteristics to appear gradually and thus for a cancer to develop.
LH-RH Luteinising hormone and releasing hormone. These are hormones released from the pituitary gland that stimulate other hormones, some of which may stimulate some cancers.
LIPOMA A benign tumour composed of fat cells.
LIVER The largest solid organ in the body. It lies in the upper abdomen predominantly on the right side and under cover of the lower-right ribs.
LYMPH NODES Small masses of lymphatic tissue 1–15 mm in diameter and normally bean-shaped. Scattered along the course of lymph vessels and often grouped in clusters, they form an important part of the body’s defence system, functioning as factories for the development of lymphocytes and filtering bacteria and foreign debris from tissue fluid. They are sometimes referred to as ‘lymph glands’.
LYMPH VESSELS or LYMPHATICS The small vessels that drain tissue fluid into lymph nodes and interconnect groups of lymph nodes. Eventually the larger lymph vessels drain this fluid into the bloodstream.
LYMPHANGIOGRAM A radiograph (X-ray photograph) of lymphatic vessels shown after they have been injected with a radio-opaque substance (dye).
LYMPHOCYTE One of the types of white cells that circulate in the blood and take part in immune reactions and the body’s defence reactions. A mononuclear non-granular leucocyte produced by lymph nodes and other lymphoid tissue.
LYMPHOID Resembling or pertaining to the tissue of the lymphatic system. This tissue contains large numbers of round cells and produces lymphocytes.
LYMPHOMA A malignant tumour or cancer of lymphoid tissue.
MABTHERA A genetically engineered monoclonal antibody directed against a particular antigen on the cell surface of normal and malignant lymphocytes.
MALAISE A general feeling of lassitude and ill-health.
MALIGNANT Life-threatening. A condition which in the natural course of events would become progressively worse, resulting in death. A malignant growth or cancer is a growth of unwanted cells that tends to continue growing and invade, thus destroying surrounding tissues. It also tends to spread to other parts of the body, destroying other tissues.
MALIGNANT FIBROUS HISTIOCYTOMA A malignant tumour of histiocytes, which are protective (immune) cells in soft tissues (muscles, fat, etc.) or in bone.
MARJOLIN’S CANCER A cancer that has developed in a longstanding chronic ulcer.
MEDIASTINUM The central midline area of the chest. That part of the chest between the sternum (breast bone) and the vertebrae (back bone) containing the heart, great blood vessels, trachea and oesophagus.
MEDULLOBLASTOMA An uncommon malignant tumour that usually develops from primitive brain cells in the cerebellar part of the brain, most commonly in children and young people.
MELANOMA A malignant growth (cancer) of pigment-producing cells, most commonly arising in the skin, sometimes in the eye and occasionally elsewhere.
METASTASIS A secondary cancer that is growing in a tissue somewhere away from where it originally developed.
METASTATIC Metastatic cancer is a secondary growth of malignant cells that has spread from a primary cancer elsewhere.
MONOCLONAL An adjective that describes a particle of one special type only. A monoclonal antibody will affect one special chemical particle only and therefore the special type of cell that carries this particle.
MRI Magnetic resonance imaging. MRI scans allow X-ray-like pictures to be taken of cross-sections of the body, head or limbs. The resulting pictures are rather like those of CT scans.
MUCOUS MEMBRANE The lining of most hollow organs and some body cavities such as the mouth, stomach and bowel, all of which contain mucous glands and secrete mucus onto the surface.
MUCUS A protective slimy material secreted by certain glands and certain cells lining body cavities and hollow organs.
MUTATION A change in genetic material that causes a change in cell growth or activity.
NAEVUS A localised collection of pigment-forming skin cells forming a circumscribed malformation, usually brown in colour, such as a mole or a birthmark.
NEOPLASM Newgrowth. An abnormal growth of body cells. A neoplasm may be benign (usually harmless) with limited growth, or malignant, with continuous, unwanted, unlimited and uncontrolled growth (cancer).
NEPHROBLASTOMA A type of kidney cancer that occurs in infants, sometimes called Wilms’ tumour.
NEUROBLASTOMA A malignant tumour of nerve-forming cells that usually arises in a special part of the nervous system called the autonomic nervous system.
NEUROMA A benign tumour composed of nerve cells.
OCCULT Concealed. Occult blood is blood which is not seen by the naked eye.
OESOPHAGUS The part of the digestive tract that allows passage of food from the mouth and pharynx to the stomach below. A muscular tube lined with epithelium extending from the neck through the chest and into the abdomen.
OESTROGEN A female sex hormone.
ONCOGENE A particular gene in a person’s chromosomes that can change and become responsible for tumour-cell growth or cancer.
ONCOLOGY The study of tumours, or the study of patients suffering from tumours.
OSTEOMYELITIS Infection of bone.
PALLIATIVE Giving relief. Relieving symptoms but not curing the condition.
PANCREAS A pale fleshy gland that lies across the back of the abdominal cavity, mostly behind the stomach, responsible for secreting digestive substances into the digestive tract and insulin into the bloodstream.
PAPILLOMA A benign wart-like or fern-like tumour derived from epithelium and projecting from the epithelial lining of a surface with a central core of small blood vessels.
PET SCAN Positron emission tomography. A special technique producing ‘pictures’ of body tissues based on different biochemical activity in the tissues.
PHYTOESTROGENS Naturally occurring oestrogen-like hormones present in relatively large quantities in certain leguminous plants such as soybeans. Thought to be at least partly responsible for the lower incidence of some cancers (especially of the breast and the prostate) in people such as Asians who have a high intake of legumes in their diets.
PITUITARY GLAND The body’s ‘master gland’. A marble-sized gland in the base of the brain that controls the activity of all other glands.
PLATELETS Small disc-shaped particles in the blood that are essential for blood-clotting.
PLEURA The lining or membrane surrounding the lungs and surrounding the cavity in which the lungs move during respiration.
PLEURODESIS An artificial pleurisy created by injecting a chemical or physical irritating substance into the pleural cavity, for the purpose of causing the walls of the pleura to ‘stick together’, so preventing fluid from being able to collect around the lungs in the pleural cavity.
PMS Premenstrual symptoms of tension, mood changes, often depression, breast engorgement and pain and discomfort experienced a few days before menstruation.
POLYP A tumour projecting on a stalk from the mucous membrane lining the cavity of a hollow organ.
PREDNISONE A synthetic cortisone-like substance.
PROGESTERONE One of the female sex hormones.
PROSTHESIS An artificial replacement for a missing part.
PROTON-BEAM RADIOTHERAPY A new type of radiotherapy given by proton beams. The irradiation is delivered accurately and more precisely to the cancer or tumour region without affecting surrounding tissues.
RADICAL Extreme. A radical mastectomy is the surgical removal of the breast together with other nearby tissues.
RADIO-OPAQUE MATERIAL A substance that does not allow penetration of X-rays, thus showing as a white area on an X-ray film. It is commonly referred to as ‘dye’. Barium and iodine are radio-opaque substances often used in X-ray studies. Lead and other metals are also radio-opaque and prevent penetration by X-rays.
RADIOTHERAPY Treatment with X-rays or gamma rays.
RESECTION Surgical removal of a part of the body.
RETICULOENDOTHELIAL SYSTEM Part of the immune system. The body system consisting of tissue defensive cells that protects the body against foreign materials and invading organisms. The special defensive cell predominantly found in bone marrow, spleen, liver and lymph nodes but also found in other tissues such as skin and soft tissues and the wall of the stomach and bowel.
SARCOMA A cancer of connective tissues such as muscle, fat, fascia or bone.
SCREENING TEST A relatively simple, safe and easily performed test that can be carried out on large numbers of people to determine whether they are likely to have a cancer or other serious disease.
SIDE EFFECT An effect other than the effect wanted.
SIGMOIDOSCOPE A long thin instrument used for passing through the anus, with a light to allow visual examination of the inside of the lower bowel.
SIGNAL HORMONE A hormone that gives a signal to stimulate activity of another hormone or cellular activity.
SPLEEN A vascular solid organ in the upper-left abdomen under the protection of the lower-left ribs. Its main function is to filter old or damaged blood cells from the bloodstream.
SQUAMOUS Squamous cells are flat scale-like cells that cover the skin, the mouth, throat, oesophagus, vagina and some other body cavities.
STEM CELL An undifferentiated precursor cell that is able to produce any type of specialised tissue cell.
STEROID One of a group of chemical compounds with a common basic chemical structure. The naturally occurring steroids include male and female sex hormones, and hormones secreted by the cortex of the adrenal gland.
THERAPY Treatment.
THYROXINE A hormone produced in the thyroid gland that stimulates body activity.
TISSUE A layer or group of cells of particular types that together perform a special function.
TOXIC Poisonous.
TRAUMA Injury.
TUMOUR A swelling. The term commonly used to describe a swelling caused by a growth of cells. A newgrowth or neoplasm that may be benign (innocent) or malignant (cancer).
TUMOUR MARKER A substance produced by a malignant tumour (cancer) that can be used to show the presence and likely size of the tumour and to indicate its response to treatment.
ULCERATIVE COLITIS An inflammatory condition of the large bowel characterised by small ulcers in the bowel lining and causing episodes of diarrhoea.
UTERUS The womb. The organ in the female pelvis in which a foetus develops.
VARICOSE ULCER An ulcer in the skin, usually on the lower leg, caused by poor circulation in the tissues as a result of longstanding varicose veins.