Test 1 Flashcards
Cancer
A disease in which cells divide repeatedly and without restraint, in some cases forming a tumor.
Cell division
The process by which a cell reproduces itself; cell division is important for normal growth, development, maintenance, and repair of an organism.
Mitosis
The segregation and separation of replicated chromosomes during cell division.
Cytokinesis
The physical division of a cell into two daughter cells.
Carcinogen
Any substance that causes cancer. Most are mutagens.
Cell Cycle Checkpoint
A cellular mechanism that ensures that a stage of the cell cycle is completed accurately.
Apoptosis
A type of cell death; often referred to as cellular suicide.
Proto-oncogene
A gene that codes for a protein that helps cells divide normally.
Oncogene
A mutated and overactive form of a proto-oncogene. Oncogenes drive cells to divide continually.
Tumor suppressor Gene
A gene that codes for a protein that monitors and checks cell cycle progression. When these genes mutate, tumor suppressor proteins lose normal function.
Benign Tumor
A noncancerous tumor whose cells will not spread throughout the body.
Malignant Tumor
A cancerous tumor whose cells can spread throughout the body.
Metastasis
The development of secondary malignant growths at a distance from a primary site of cancer.
Chemotherapy
Treaatment using toxic chemicals that kill cancer by interfering with cell division.
Radiation Therapy
The use of ionizing (high energy) radiation to treat cancer.
Targeted Therapy
A cancer therapy that is specific for cancer cells and not harmful to normal cells.
Immunotherapy
A cancer therapy that uses the immune system to recognize and destroy cancer cells.
Anecdotal Evidence
An informal observation that has not been systematically tested.
Hypothesis
A tentative explanation for a scientific observation or question.
Experimental Group
The group in an experiment that experiences the experimental intervention or manipulation.
Control Group
The group in an experiment that experiences no experimental intervention or manipulation.
Placebo
A fake treatment guven to control groups to mimic the experience of the experimental groups.
Independent Variable
The variable, or factor, being deliberately changed in the experimental group relative to the control group.
Dependent Variable
The measured result of an experiment, analyzed in both the experimental and control groups.