Breast Cancer
Information — Breast Cancer Treatment Medical
Dictionary
Medical knowledge about breast cancer is advancing rapidly. Women
now have many more choices to make about imaging tests, biopsies, surgeries,
and drug treatments. This medical dictionary covers the terms used in the report, Breast
Cancer: Strategies for Living, and includes details on symptoms, treatments,
awareness, surviving the cancer, and more.
adjuvant therapy: Treatment
such as chemotherapy, hormonal therapy, or radiation
used following surgery to cure, reduce, or control
cancer.
aspiration: The use of a hollow
needle and syringe to suction out fluid or cells
from a cyst or tumor.
atypical lobular hyperplasia: Abnormally
shaped cells multiplying excessively in the normal
tissue of a breast lobule.
axillary: In the armpit.
benign: Not cancerous.
biopsy: Tissue or cells removed
from the body and examined microscopically to
determine whether cancer is present.
calcifications: Small calcium
deposits in breast tissue that can be seen by
mammography.
carcinoma: Cancer that arises
from epithelial tissue (tissue that lines a cavity
or surface); occurs often in the breast.
chemoprevention: The use of
drugs or chemicals to prevent cancer.
chemotherapy: Treatment of
cancer with powerful drugs that destroy cancer
cells.
core needle biopsy: Use of
a hollow needle to extract a sample of a lump
or other suspicious tissue for examination.
cyst: A lump or swelling filled
with fluid or semifluid material.
duct: A channel in the breast
that carries milk from the lobule to the nipple
during lactation.
endometrium: The lining of
the uterus.
estrogen: A female sex hormone
produced chiefly by the ovaries.
estrogen receptor: A site on
the surface of some cells to which estrogen molecules
attach.
false negative: Test results
that incorrectly indicate that the tested disease
or substance is not present.
fibroadenoma: A benign, fibrous
tumor commonly found in the breast.
free radicals: Toxic atoms
produced by chemical reactions within a cell.
hematoma: A swelling formed
of blood. Infrequently occurs at the site of
surgery, such as in a biopsy cavity after a lumpectomy.
hyperplasia: Excessive cell
growth.
infiltrating cancer: A cancer
that has spread from its site of origin into
surrounding tissue.
in situ: Latin for “in
place.” As part of the term “ductal
carcinoma in situ,” it means that cancer
cells exist and are still contained within the
ducts of the milk-producing gland.
lobules: Milk-producing glands
of the breast.
lymphedema: An accumulation
of lymph fluid in the arm, hand, or breast that
may develop when lymphatic vessels or nodes have
been removed or blocked by surgery, or after
radiation therapy. It can appear immediately
after treatment or many years later.
lymph nodes: Small, bean-shaped
organs linked by lymphatic vessels. As part of
the immune system, they filter out germs and
foreign matter. Also called lymph glands.
malignant: Cancerous.
metastasis: The spread of cancer
cells from the site of origin to another part
of the body.
metastases: Secondary cancers
that form after cancer cells spread to other
parts of the body.
neoadjuvant therapy: Therapy
with anticancer drugs or radiation given before
surgery in order to shrink a tumor.
palpable: Able to be felt.
progesterone: A hormone produced
by the ovaries and adrenal glands; essential
for healthy functioning of the female reproductive
system.
radiation therapy: The use
of x-rays at very high doses to treat or control
disease.
seroma: An accumulation of lymphatic
fluid under an incision.
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