THE CANCER TERMS; A

THE TERMS AND DEFINITIONS IN CANCER









The terms used to describe cancer in word list; A

Acinar cell carcinoma. A carcinoma occurring mainly in adults, composed of relatively uniform neoplastic cells that are arranged in solid and acinar patterns and produce pancreatic enzymes.

Abnormal cells: cells that do not look or act like the healthy cells of the body.

Adenoma. A circumscribed benign lesion composed of tubular and/or villous structures showing intraepithelial neoplasia. The neoplastic epithelial cells are immature and typically have enlarged, hyperbasophilic and stratified nuclei.

Adenocarcinoma. A malignant epithelial tumour with glandular differentiation.

Adenocarcinoma of the appendix. A malignant epithelial neoplasm of the appendix with invasion beyond the muscularis mucosae.

Adenocarcinoma of the oesophagus. A malignant epithelial tumour of the oesophagus with glandular differentiation arising predominantly from Barrett mucosa in the lower third of the oesophagus. Infrequently, adenocarcinoma originates from heterotopic gastric mucosa in the upper oesophagus, or from mucosal and submucosal glands.

Adenocarcinoma of the oesophagogastric Junction. Adenocarcinomas that straddle the junction of the oesophagus and stomach are called tumours of the oesophagogastric (OG) junction. This definition includes many tumours formerly called cancers of the gastric cardia. Squamous cell carcinomas that occur at the OG junction are considered carcinomas of the distal oesophagus, even if they cross the OG junction.

Aflatoxin B1 (AFB1). is a potent liver carcinogen in several animal species as well as in humans. It is produced by the moulds Aspergillus parasiticus and Aspergillus flavus which under hot and humid conditions in tropical countries typically contaminate grain, particularly ground nuts (peanuts).

Alfred Knudson. He is an American pediatrician and scientist. In the early 1970s, at the Fox Chase Cancer Center studied retinoblastoma, a rare childhood eye cancer that is sometimes inherited but is most often sporadic. He observed that children who had inherited retinoblastoma often had the cancer at birth, and were at high risk of developing multiple cancers in both eyes.

Anaplastic/Undifferentiated. "A loss of differentiation of cells and of their orientation to one another"; tumours that are anaplastic are usually considered very malignant and aggressive.

Angiogenesis; is the creation of new blood vessels. The term comes from 2 Greek words: angio, meaning "blood vessel," and genesis, meaning "beginning."

Aromatase inhibitor: medicine that reduces estrogen in the body (after menopause).

Aspiration; "The removal of fluid or gases from a cavity by suction"; when we "aspirate" something, we place a needle (which is attached to a syringe) into a tissue and draw back on the syringe; cells are thus dislodged from the tissue into the needle and syringe; we can then spread these cells onto a slide so that they can be stained and examined under the microscope.

Avicenna (Ibn Sina). He stated that the excision should be radical and that all diseased tissue should be removed, which included the use of amputation or the removal of veins running in the direction of the tumour. He also recommended the use of cauterization for the area being treated if necessary.

Axillary lymph nodes; lymph nodes under your arms.