Medical terms A–Z

A substance being studied in the treatment of cancer.

Auricular describes anything relating to the ear, particularly its outer visible structure, though it also names an unrelated heart structure.

A procedure that uses gold salts (a salt form of the metal element gold) to treat diseases, such as rheumatoid arthritis.

Listening to sounds produced within the body, usually with a stethoscope.

An autoclave sterilizes medical and laboratory equipment using pressurized steam at temperatures high enough to destroy microorganisms and their spores.

A substance found in soybeans that may slow down or stop the spread of cancer.

A condition in which the body recognizes its own tissues as foreign and directs an immune response against them.

An autoimmune condition of the thyroid gland (a gland located beneath the larynx).

Autologous describes tissue, cells, or blood taken from a person and later used in that same person, rather than from another donor.

In transplantation, refers to a person's own bone marrow.

A cancer cell from an individual's own tumor.

Two opposing divisions, one for action and one for rest, keep heart rate, blood pressure, and digestion balanced without any conscious effort.

Autophagy is the cell's built-in recycling process that clears damaged components and helps it survive periods of stress or limited nutrients.

Short term relief that teaches itself: stepping away eases the fear at once, and that immediate ease keeps the pattern running.

The axilla is the anatomical region under the arm where it meets the shoulder, containing lymph nodes, vessels, and nerves.

Belonging to the armpit, a small hollow crowded with the nerves, vessels and lymph nodes that serve the entire arm.

Surgery to remove lymph nodes found in the armpit region.

Axillary lymph nodes filter lymph draining from the arm, chest wall, and breast, and are checked in infection, injury, and cancer staging.

Surgery to remove lymph nodes found in the armpit region.

A substance being studied in the treatment of certain multiple myelomas and other advanced cancers.

A substance being studied in the treatment of some types of cancer.

A substance being studied in the treatment of breast, ovarian, and prostate cancers caused by mutations (changes) in the BRCA1 and BRCA2 genes.

A substance being studied in the treatment of several types of cancer.

A substance that is used in cancer research to cause colon tumors in laboratory animals.

An anticancer drug that is able to cross the blood-brain barrier and kill cancer cells in the central nervous system.

The first drug ever licensed against HIV, still in use but now only as one part of a combination.

The cell that becomes an antibody factory, and the reason a second meeting with the same germ goes so much better than the first.

An aggressive (fast-growing) type of leukemia (blood cancer) in which too many B-cell lymphoblasts (immature white blood cells) are found in the bone marrow and blood.

An aggressive (fast-growing) type of leukemia (blood cancer) in which too many B-cell lymphoblasts (immature white blood cells) are found in the bone marrow and blood.

B-cell lymphoma is a cancer of infection-fighting B cells that ranges from slow-growing to fast-growing, with outlook depending on the specific subtype.

A protein found on some tumor cells.

A molecule that helps control immune responses in the body.

A stack of small bones with shock absorbers between them, rigid enough to carry weight and flexible enough to bend in every direction.

Vastly more of them live on a person harmlessly than will ever cause illness, which is why killing them indiscriminately has costs.

A toxic substance, made by bacteria, that can be modified to kill specific tumor cells without harming normal cells.

A substance being studied in the treatment of peripheral neuropathy (pain, numbness, tingling, burning, or weakness in the hands or feet) caused by chemotherapy.

A narrowed artery reopened from the inside by a balloon threaded to the blockage on a fine wire, without opening the chest.

A system used to deliver internal radiation therapy to breast cancer patients after surgery to remove their cancer.

The gap between a dose that sedates and one that stops breathing is narrow, which is why safer alternatives displaced this class.

A procedure in which a liquid with barium in it is put into the rectum and colon by way of the anus.

A liquid containing barium sulfate that is used in x-rays to highlight parts of the digestive system.

The process of getting x-ray pictures of the esophagus or the upper gastrointestinal (GI) tract (esophagus, stomach, and duodenum).

This condition replaces the esophagus's normal lining with a different cell type after long term acid reflux, and carries a modestly increased cancer risk.

A barrier is a structure or mechanism that blocks, filters, or limits passage of substances, cells, or organisms, a concept used throughout physiology.

A basal cell is one of the small, round cells forming the deepest layer of the epidermis, where new skin cells are continuously produced.

Basal cell cancer is the most common skin cancer, growing slowly on sun exposed skin and rarely spreading to distant parts of the body.

Common, local and slow: this skin cancer damages the tissue around it far more often than it travels anywhere else.

A genetic condition that causes unusual facial features and disorders of the skin, bones, nervous system, eyes, and endocrine glands.

A baseline is an initial measurement recorded before a condition or treatment begins, providing a reference point for detecting change over time.

Basophils are the least common white blood cell type, releasing histamine and other chemicals that help drive allergic reactions and certain inflammatory responses.

An anticancer drug that belongs to the family of drugs called angiogenesis inhibitors.

A substance being studied in the treatment of cancer.

An anticancer drug that belongs to the family of drugs called angiogenesis inhibitors.

A drug used to treat advanced kidney cancer and a type of liver cancer that cannot be removed by surgery.

A substance that is being studied in the treatment of cancer.

A substance being studied in the prevention of cancer.

A substance that is being studied in the treatment of cancer.

A substance that is being studied in the treatment of cancer.

A protein that helps control whether a cell lives or dies by blocking a type of cell death called apoptosis.

A licensed pharmacist with special training in how to design, give, monitor, and change chemotherapy for cancer patients.

A gene formed when pieces of chromosomes 9 and 22 break off and trade places.

A protein made from pieces of two genes that get joined together.

A substance being studied in the treatment of some types of leukemia and lymphoma.

An abbreviation for a chemotherapy combination used to treat advanced Hodgkin lymphoma.

A rare, overgrowth disorder in which babies are large at birth and may develop low blood sugar.

A protein involved in autophagy (the process by which a cell destroys proteins and other substances in its cytoplasm).

Beclomethasone is an inhaled and topical corticosteroid used long term to control asthma, allergic rhinitis, and certain inflammatory bowel conditions.

Changing what a person does by changing what happens around it, rather than by working out why the habit began.

A rare type of kidney cancer that grows and spreads quickly.

The active ingredient in a substance being studied in the treatment of small cell lung cancer and other types of cancer.

Free antibody light chains spilling into the urine, and the reason a reassuring dipstick reading can sit on top of heavy protein loss.

A term used to describe the process by which the results of research done in the laboratory are directly used to develop new ways to treat patients.

Bendamustine is an alkylating chemotherapy drug with a structure related to purine building blocks, used mainly for certain leukemias and lymphomas.

Not cancerous; often used for a growth that does not invade nearby tissue or spread distantly.

A common condition marked by benign (not cancer) changes in breast tissue.

A benign (not cancer) condition in which an overgrowth of prostate tissue pushes against the urethra and the bladder, blocking the flow of urine.

A benign tumor is a growth that does not invade nearby tissue or spread elsewhere, though its location can still make it clinically significant.

The smell of marzipan in a bottle, and the compound released when bitter almond or apricot kernels are crushed.

Long term occupational exposure to benzene is a recognized cause of a specific bone marrow cancer, prompting strict workplace exposure limits.

Five fused rings made whenever organic matter burns badly, and among the first pure chemicals isolated from coal tar and shown to cause tumors.

A substance being studied as a mouth rinse treatment for oral mucositis (painful mouth sores) caused by cancer therapy.

Three drugs behind one of the great successes in cancer treatment, and a regimen whose limits are set by its own side effects.

Grief follows no fixed timetable and no set order of stages, despite the widely quoted model that is often read as though it did.

Bergamot is the essential oil of a citrus fruit grown mainly in Italy, used to flavor food and drink and in aromatherapy.

A substance used in surgical wound healing to cause a blood clot to form.

Best practice guidelines are periodically revised as new research emerges, meaning the recommended approach for a given condition can change over time.

A substance that is being studied in the treatment of cancer.

An abnormal mass that grows in the beta cells of the pancreas that make insulin.

A type of bacterium often found in the vagina.

A small protein normally found on the surface of many cells, including lymphocytes, and in small amounts in the blood and urine.

A substance produced in the brain, especially in the pituitary gland, that blocks the sensation of pain.

A gene therapy agent that is being studied in the treatment of cancer.

A shared vocabulary and a numbered ending for breast imaging reports, built so the same words mean the same thing everywhere.

A topical preparation to reduce the risk of, and treat skin reactions to, radiation therapy.

Adding participants fixes random error but never bias, so a very large flawed study can be more confidently wrong than a small one.

A substance being studied in the treatment of some types of cancer.

A cigarette made by rolling tobacco by hand in a dried leaf from the tendu tree (a member of the ebony family).

Affecting both the right and left sides of the body.

Cancer that occurs in both paired organs, such as both breasts or both ovaries.

Surgery to remove both kidneys.