Glossary of Medical Terms

A test used to detect some types of hearing loss, such as hearing loss caused by injury or tumors that affect nerves involved in hearing. Electrodes are placed on the head and certain tones or clicking sounds are made. The electrodes measure nerve signals in the brain when it reacts to the sounds. Also called auditory brain stem response test, BAER test, and brain stem auditory evoked response test.

A drug used to treat breast cancer that has come back or spread to other parts of the body. It is also used with carboplatin to treat advanced non-small cell lung cancer in patients who are not able to have surgery or radiation therapy. It is also used with gemcitabine hydrochloride to treat pancreatic cancer that has spread to other parts of the body. It is being studied in the treatment of other types of cancer. Abraxane is a form of the anticancer drug paclitaxel and may cause fewer side effects than paclitaxel. It stops cancer cells from growing and dividing, and may kill them. It is a type of mitotic inhibitor and a type of antimicrotubule agent. Also called ABI-007, nanoparticle paclitaxel, paclitaxel albumin-stabilized nanoparticle formulation, and protein-bound paclitaxel.

A rare type of soft tissue tumor that usually begins in Schwann cells (cells that hold nerve cells in place). It can occur anywhere in the body, but it usually occurs in or under the skin of the head and neck (especially the mouth or tongue). It may also occur in the chest, breast, esophagus, stomach, or other internal organ. Most Abrikossoff tumors are benign (not cancer), but some may be malignant (cancer) and spread quickly to nearby tissue. They usually occur in middle-aged adults. Also called granular cell tumor.

An enclosed collection of pus in tissues, organs, or confined spaces in the body. An abscess is a sign of infection and is usually swollen and inflamed.

Describes the shrinking or disappearance of tumors in parts of the body that were not the direct target of local therapy, such as radiation therapy. It is thought that in the abscopal effect, the immune system is stimulated to fight cancer in the whole body as a result of the local therapy. Learning more about the abscopal effect may help in the development of new cancer treatments, especially for metastatic cancer.

A measure of the number of neutrophils in the blood. Neutrophils are a type of white blood cell. They help the body fight infection. An absolute neutrophil count may be used to check for infection, inflammation, leukemia, and other conditions. The lower a person's absolute neutrophil count is, the higher the risk is of getting an infection. Having an absolute neutrophil count of less than 500 means there is a high risk of getting an infection. Cancer treatment, such as chemotherapy, may reduce the absolute neutrophil count. Also called ANC.

A measure of the risk of a certain event happening. In cancer research, it is the likelihood that a person who is free of a specific type of cancer at a given age will develop that cancer over a certain period of time. For example, a woman 35 years of age, with no known risk factors for breast cancer, has an absolute risk of getting breast cancer over a lifetime of 90 years of about 13.5%, meaning one out of every seven women will develop breast cancer.

The process of taking nutrients from the digestive system into the blood so they can be used in the body.

A substance being studied in the treatment of lymphomas and other types of cancer. It blocks some of the enzymes that keep cancer cells from dying. It is a type of Bcl-2 family inhibitor. Also called navitoclax.

A substance being studied in the treatment of cancer. It is a type of angiogenesis inhibitor.