terminology

Question 1

Tumour-

Answer 1

swelling of any part of a body due to abnormal cell growth. Can be benign or malignant.

Question 2

Neoplasm

Answer 2

An abnormal mass of tissue that forms due to uncontrolled cell division. Can be benign or malignant.

Question 3

Benign

Answer 3

An abnormal growth of tissue that do not spread or invade other organs and cells are well differentiated. Large benign tumours can put pressure on organs and cause health problems for example Benign Prostate Hypertrophy (BPH).

Question 4

Malignant

Answer 4

uncontrolled growth of cells that spread and invade surrounding tissues. Most dangerous type of tumour and accounts for a large percentage of cancer deaths.

Question 5

Metastasis

Answer 5

is the spread and development of cancer cells from the original site to another place in the body. Also called secondary cancer.

Question 6

Primary

Answer 6

the original or first anatomical site where tumour progression began in the body.

Question 7

Secondary:

Answer 7

cancer cells that have spread(metastasised) from the original anatomical site of progression and invaded another tissue or organ

Question 8

Carcinoma -

Answer 8

a tumour derived from epithelial cells those cells that line the surface of our skin and organs. This is the most common cancer type and represents about
80-90% of all cancer cases reported. For example, adenocarcinoma, squamous cell carcinoma.

Question 9

Sarcoma -

Answer 9

A type of cancer that begins in bone or in the soft tissues of the body,
including cartilage, fat, muscle, blood vessels, fibrous tissue, or other connective or supportive tissue. For example, osteosarcoma forms in bone, liposarcoma forms in fat, and rhabdomyosarcoma forms in muscle.

Question 10

Leukaemia

Answer 10

malignant cancer which affects stem cells in the bone marrow; affects red and white blood cells or their precursors and produces increased numbers of
immature or abnormal leukocytes. These suppress the normal production of blood cells causing anaemia and immunosuppression. For example, Acute Lymphoblastic Leukaemia (ALL) and Acute Myeloid Leukaemia (AML).

Question 11

Lymphoma

Answer 11

cancer arising from the lymphatic system affects the white blood cells of the immunity system. For example, Hodgkin’s Lymphoma.

Question 12

Myeloma

Answer 12

cancer occurs when abnormal plasma cells of the bone marrow grow in an uncontrolled way affecting the white blood cells responsible for the production of antibodies (B lymphocytes or B-cells).

Question 13

Mesothelioma

Answer 13

(also called malignant mesothelioma) occurs when abnormal cells in the tissue that surrounds the lungs grow in an uncontrolled way

Question 14

Melanoma

Answer 14

abnormal growth of cells in the skin grow in an uncontrolled way. Melanocytes produce melanin, a brown pigment that gives the skin its colour.

Question 15

Carcinogens:

Answer 15

Substances that can cause cancer in living tissue. One of the most potent carcinogens in humans is benzo(a)pyrene, a compound found in cigarette smoke.

Question 16

Carcinogenesis:

Answer 16

the process by which normal cells are transformed and develop into cancer cells.

Question 17

Angiogenesis:

Answer 17

Micro-metastases stimulate the growth and development of new blood vessels to obtain a blood supply.

Question 18

Local invasion:

Answer 18

Cancer cells invade nearby healthy tissue.

Question 19

Intravasation:

Answer 19

Cancer cells invade and move through the walls of nearby lymph vessels or blood vessels.

Question 20

Circulation:

Answer 20

Cancer cells move through the lymphatic system and the bloodstream to other parts of the body.

Question 21

Proliferation:

Answer 21

rapid reproduction of cancer cells at the distant location to form small tumours known as micro-metastases.

Question 22

Growth fraction

Answer 22

Growth fraction is the ratio of the total number of cells to the number of dividing cells. As a rule, the higher the growth fraction, the more rapidly tumour mass
increases.

Question 23

Doubling time is the

Answer 23

time taken for the tumour to double its volume; the average time for most solid tumours being 2-3 months.

Question 24

Tumour markers

Answer 24

are substances, usually proteins that are produced by the body in response to cancer growth or by the cancer tissue itself. Tumour markers are not diagnostic in themselves.

Question 25

Somatic variants are

Answer 25

gene changes which accumulate over the lifetime of an individual due to factors such as age, lifestyle or environmental factors.

Question 26

Germline variants are

Answer 26

present from conception and are in every cell of the body. In most cases, germline variants are inherited from a parent.

Question 27

Hyperplasia-

Answer 27

altered cell divides in an uncontrolled manner leading to an excess of cells in that region of the tissue. The cells have a normal appearance but there are too many of them.

Question 28

Dysplasia is an.

Answer 28

abnormal condition in which cells may have altered shape or divide in a way that alters the appearance of the tissue or organ. This often occurs when cells divide rapidly and may be a precursor to cancerous growth.

Question 29

Anaplasia is a

Answer 29

malignant cell that has transformed and lost the morphological features and resemblance of the original cell, cells are poorly differentiated. For example, anaplastic large cell lymphoma, anaplastic astrocytoma and anaplastic thyroid cancer.

Question 30

Metaplasia is the

Answer 30

transformation or replacement of one differentiated cell type with another differentiated cell type, that does not normally occur in the tissue in which it
is found. For example, intestinal metaplasia, whereby intestinal cells are found in the gastric lining.

Question 31

Cancer stem cells

Answer 31

A stem cell is a special cell type that has both the ability to
reproduce exact copies of itself and the ability to change (differentiate) into one of the many specialized cell types in the body. Examples of specialized cells that arise from stem cells include nerves, muscles and the cells lining our digestive system.

Question 32

Differentiation is a

Answer 32

histological classification of cells or tissues used in grading systems to describe whether the cells look like the original or changed.
Well-differentiated cancer cells look more like normal cells and tend to grow more slowly than poorly differentiated or undifferentiated cancer

Question 33

Mutations are

Answer 33

genetic changes in the controls that regulate cells and affect the behaviour of cells

Question 34

Tumour suppressor gene TP53:

Answer 34

This gene is a tumour suppressor gene that is in charge of regulating cell division and cell death

Question 35

Colony Formation

Answer 35

The metastatic cell creates and establishes favourable surroundings within a hostile foreign environment that will allow for their growth and survival.

Question 36

External radiation the

Answer 36

process involves high-energy beams being directed at tumours to kill cancer cells by a machine; also causes damage to healthy cells.

Question 37

Internal radiation or brachytherapy uses a

Answer 37

radioactive “seed” or “pellet” which is placed inside the body, in or near the tumour; the radioactive source releases energized particles that target and kill the tumour cells.

Question 38

Immunotherapy-

Answer 38

treatment for cancer whereby there is modulation of the immune system designed to overcome the immune system blocks created by cancer cells.

Question 39

is a medical treatment that utilises extreme cold to freeze cells thereby killing the cancer tissue.

Answer 39

Cryotherapy (Cryoablation), is a medical treatment that utilises extreme cold to freeze cells thereby killing the cancer tissue.

Question 40

Targeted therapy refers

Answer 40

treatment with medicines that are designed to specifically attack cancer cells without harming normal cells. These types of medicines affect the way that cancer cells grow, divide, repair themselves or interact with other cells.

Question 41

Bone marrow harvest is a

Answer 41

surgical procedure whereby a sample of the bone marrow stem cells are extracted or aspirated.

Question 42

Bone marrow transplantation

Answer 42

treatment for blood cell cancers in which harvested bone marrow cells are introduced into the bone marrow to replace the stem cells.
May be autologous (using the person’s own stem cells), allogenic (cells from an unrelated donor) or synergic (using stem cells donated by an identical twin).

Question 43

Hormone-based

Answer 43

cancer treatments use drugs to starve the cancer cells of the hormonal signals that would otherwise stimulate them to divide. The drugs used in these treatments work by blocking the activity of the hormone in the target cell.