Cancer and Oncology Terms

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

A rare type of malignant (cancer) germ cell tumor (type of tumor that begins in the cells that give rise to sperm or eggs) that often contains several different types of tissue such as hair, muscle…

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

A substance being studied in the treatment of multiple myeloma and several other types of cancer.

Rather than attacking a disease directly, these treatments change what the immune system is willing to attack, or willing to tolerate.

A type of radiation therapy in which radioactive material sealed in needles, seeds, wires, or catheters is placed directly into or near a tumor.

Radiation shaped to the tumor rather than aimed at a box around it, using beams whose strength varies across their own width.

A radiolabeled monoclonal antibody that is used to detect certain types of B-cell non-Hodgkin lymphoma and is being studied in the detection of other types of B-cell tumors.

A type of metastasis in which skin cancer spreads through a lymph vessel and begins to grow more than 2 centimeters away from the primary tumor but before it reaches the nearest lymph node.

A word meaning painless that drifted into meaning slow, and a label promising more comfort than it can deliver.

A type of lymphoma that tends to grow and spread slowly, and has few symptoms.

Initial treatment used to reduce a cancer.

Cancer that has spread from where it started in the breast into surrounding, healthy tissue.

Cancer that has spread beyond the layer of tissue in which it developed and is growing into surrounding, healthy tissues.

The most common type of invasive breast cancer.

A type of breast cancer in which the breast looks red and swollen and feels warm.

A substance being studied in the diagnosis of lung diseases, including lung cancer.

Treatment that is given after cancer has disappeared following the initial therapy.

A drug used to treat some infections caused by viruses and several types of cancer.

A type of lymphoma that grows and spreads quickly and has severe symptoms.