Chapter 19 - Key Vocabs

Question 1

Adjuvant chemotherapy

Answer 1

1. Assisting primary treatment

2. Drugs are given after primary therapy (surgery or radiation)

Question 2

Alkylating agents

Answer 2

1. Chemotherapeutic synthetic drugs that cause crosslinks and breaks in DNA to stop cells from dividing
2. Directly damage DNA to prevent the cancer cell from reproducing

Question 3

Anaplasis

Answer 3

Loss of differentiation of cells. No organization, and not specialized cells either.

Question 4

Angiogenesis

Answer 4

Process of forming new blood vessels

Question 5

Antibiotics

Answer 5

Chemotherapeutic synthetic drugs found in bacteria and fungi, which cause breaks in DNA strands to inhibit cell division.

Question 6

Antimetabolites

Answer 6

Chemotherapeutic agents that:

1. Prevent cell division
2. Inhibit formation of substances needed to make DNA. Blocks the synthesis of DNA components.

Question 7

Antimitotics

Answer 7

1. Chemotherapeutic chemicals that block the function of a protein necessary for mitosis (cell division).
2. Mitotic inhibitors are often plant alkaloids and other compounds derived from natural products.

Question 8

Apoptosis

Answer 8

Programmed cell death

Question 9

Benign tumor

Answer 9

Noncancerous growth (neoplasm)

Question 10

Biological response modifiers

Answer 10

1. Produced by normal cells

2. Directly block tumor growth or stimulate immune system to fight cancer

Question 11

Biological therapy

Answer 11

Use of the body’s own defenses to destroy tumor cells

Question 12

Brachtherapy

Answer 12

Use of radiation placed directly on or within the cancer

Question 13

Carcinogens

Answer 13

Agents that cause cancer

Question 14

Carcinoma

Answer 14

Cancerous tumor made up of cells of epithelial origin

Question 15

Cellular oncogenes

Answer 15

Pieces of DNA, activated by mutations or dislocations, that can cause a normal cell to become malignant

Question 16

Chemotherapy

Answer 16

Treatment with drugs

Question 17

Combination chemotherapy

Answer 17

Use of several chemotherapeutic agents together in treatment of tumors

Question 18

Dedifferentiation

Answer 18

Loss of differentiation of cells. Less specialized and lack orderly arrangement (anaplastic)

Question 19

Deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA)

Answer 19

1. Genetic material within the nucleus of a cell

2. Controls cell division and protein synthesis

Question 20

Differentiating agents

Answer 20

Drugs that promote tumor cells to differentiate, stop growing, and die

Question 21

Differentiation

Answer 21

Specialization of cells

Question 22

Electron beams

Answer 22

Low-energy beams of radiation for treatment of skin or surface tumors

Question 23

Encapsulated

Answer 23

Surrounded by a capsule; benign tumors are encapsulated

Question 24

External beam irradiation

Answer 24

Applying radiation to a tumor from a source outside the body

Question 25

Fields

Answer 25

Dimensions of body areas undergoing irradiation

Question 26

Fractionation

Answer 26

Giving radiation in small, repeated doses

Question 27

Genetic screening

Answer 27

Testing family members to determine if they have inherited a cancer-causing gene

Question 28

Grading tumors

Answer 28

Evaluating the degree of maturity of tumor cells

Question 29

Gray (gy)

Answer 29

Unit of absorbed radiation dose

Question 30

Gross description of tumors

Answer 30

Visual appearances of tumors to the naked eye

Question 31

Hormonal agents

Answer 31

1. These drugs block hormone receptors on cells so that the growth is inhibited. 2. These are sex hormone or hormone-like drugs that change the action or production of female or male hormones.