CH. 2: Oncology Terms

Question 1

oncology

Answer 1

the study of tumors

Question 2

adenocarcinoma

Answer 2

cancerous tumor of glandular tissue

Question 3

adenoma

Answer 3

tumor composed of glandular tissue (benign)

Question 4

carcinoma (CA)

Answer 4

cancerous tumor (malignant)

Question 5

epithelioma

Answer 5

tumor composed of epithelium (may be benign or malignant)

Question 6

fibroma

Answer 6

tumor composed of fiber (fibrous tissue) (benign)

Question 7

fibrosarcoma

Answer 7

malignant tumor composed of fiber (fibrous tissue)

Question 8

leiomyoma

Answer 8

tumor composed of smooth muscle

Question 9

leiomyosarcoma

Answer 9

malignant tumor of smooth muscle

Question 10

lipoma

Answer 10

tumor composed of fat (benign tumor)

Question 11

liposarcoma

Answer 11

malignant tumor of fat

Question 12

melanoma

Answer 12

black tumor (primarily of the skin)

Question 13

metastasis (pl. metastases)

Answer 13

beyond control (transfer of cells from one organ to another, as in malignant tumors)

Question 14

myoma

Answer 14

tumor composed of muscle (benign)

Question 15

neoplasm

Answer 15

new growth (of abnormal tissue, benign or malignant)

Question 16

neuroma

Answer 16

tumor composed of nerve (benign)

Question 17

rhabdomyoma

Answer 17

tumor composed of striated muscle (benign)

Question 18

rhabdomyosarcoma

Answer 18

malignant tumor of striated muscle

Question 19

sarcoma

Answer 19

tumor of connective tissue (such as bone or cartilage; highly malignant)

Question 20

melanocarcinoma

Answer 20

cancerous black tumor (malignant)

Question 21

benign

Answer 21

not malignant, nonrecurrent, favorable for recovery

Question 22

biological therapy

Answer 22

treatment of cancer with biological response modifiers (BRM) that work with the immune system (also called biotherapy or immunotherapy)

Question 23

carcinoma in situ

Answer 23

cancer in the early stage before invading surrounding tissue

Question 24

chemotherapy

Answer 24

treatment of cancer with drugs

Question 25

encapsulated

Answer 25

enclosed within a capsule, as with benign or malignant tumors that have not spread beyond the capsule of the organ in which it originated

Question 26

hospice

Answer 26

provides palliative or supportive care for terminally ill patients and their families. Usually offered to those who have a prognosis of approx. 6 months or less, when curative forms of treatment are no longer possible or desired. A team-based approach delivers care in a variety of setting, most often in the patient’s home.

Question 27

malignant

Answer 27

tending to become progressively worse and to cause death, as in cancer

Question 28

palliative

Answer 28

providing relief but not cure. Symptom management is provided to relieve suffering in all stages of disease, and is not limited to care at the end of life. It can be give with curative or life-prolonging treatment, or with end-of-life (hospice) care. While hospice care includes palliative care, not all of palliative care is hospice care.

Question 29

radiation therapy (XRT)

Answer 29

treatment of cancer with a radioactive substance, x-ray, or radiation (also called radiation oncology and radiotherapy).

Question 30

remission

Answer 30

improvement or absence of signs of disease

Question 31

Neoadjuvant therapy

Answer 31

a cancer treatment that precedes other treatment, such as administering chemotherapy or radiation therapy to a patient before surgery

Question 32

adjuvant chemotherapy

Answer 32

the use of chemotherapy after or in combination with another form of cancer treatment such as administering chemotherapy after surgery or with radiation therapy

Question 33

brachytherapy

Answer 33

the use of radiotherapy, where the source of radiation is placed within or close to the area being treated, such as implantation of radiation sources into the breast to treat cancer

Question 34

biological therapy

Answer 34

the treatment of cancer with the use of man-made biological response modifiers (BRM) that occur naturally in the body. They alter the immune system’s interaction with cancer cells to restore, direct, or boost the body’s ability to fight disease. For example, an agent called rituximab (Rituxan), a monoclonal antibody, is used to treat some lymphomas. Other biological agents are thalidomide, which is used to treat multiple myeloma, and interferon, which is used in the treatment of lymphomas.