Treatment and Supportive Care Terms

Initial treatment used to reduce a cancer.

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

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

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

A type of radiation therapy used to treat liver cancer that is advanced or has come back.

A type of internal radiation therapy in which radioactive material sealed in needles, seeds, wires, or catheters is placed directly into a body cavity such as the chest cavity or the vagina.

Radiation treatment aimed directly at a tumor during surgery.

Treatment in which anticancer drugs are put directly into the abdominal cavity through a thin tube.

Treatment in which a radioactive liquid is put directly into the abdomen through a thin tube.

Treatment in which anticancer drugs are injected into the fluid-filled space between the thin layers of tissue that cover the brain and spinal cord.

Laser therapy applies a focused beam of light to cut, seal, or reshape tissue, with uses spanning surgery, eye care, dermatology, and supportive cancer care.

Treatment with drugs that become active and may kill cancer cells when exposed to light.

Different wavelengths do entirely different jobs, so the color of the light is as much a part of the prescription as the timing.

Treatment with drugs that become active and may kill cancer cells when exposed to light.

Treatment that affects cells in the tumor and the area close to it.

Treatment that is given to help keep cancer from coming back after it has disappeared following the initial therapy.

Pressure, pace and depth vary widely between styles, so two sessions given the same name can feel entirely different.

An abbreviation for a chemotherapy combination used with other types of therapy to treat colorectal cancer.

Hormones (estrogen, progesterone, or both) given to women after menopause to replace the hormones no longer produced by the ovaries.

Treatment to correct changes in metabolism that can be caused by disease.