Glossary

A

Advanced

Advanced cancer is cancer that has spread or come back. It is used to describe cancer that is unlikely or cannot be cured. Doctors sometimes use other words to describe advanced cancer. For example, they may use ‘metastatic’ or ‘secondary’ cancer to describe cancer that has spread to other parts of the body. Depending on the cancer type, it may also be called stage 4 cancer.

Axilla

Armpit.

Axillary lymph nodes

Lymph nodes found in the armpit.

B

Bilateral

Both sides, such as both breasts.

Biopsy

The removal of a small piece of your body, for example part of your breast or lymph node, which is then tested for cancer cells.

Biomarker

A substance found in blood, urine, or body tissue that can give doctors useful information about a cancer. Biomarkers are molecules that indicate normal or abnormal process taking place in your body and may be a sign of an underlying condition or disease. Various types of molecules, such as DNA (genes), proteins or hormones, can serve as biomarkers, since they all indicate something about your health.

BRCA1 and BRCA2

Genes that, when abnormal, can cause an inherited risk of breast and ovarian cancers.

C

CELL

The smallest living unit in plants and animals; both your body and tumour are both made up of many cells.

Complete response

The disappearance of all signs of cancer within sampled or imaged tissues in response to treatment. This does not always mean the cancer has been cured. Also called complete remission.

D

De novo metastatic breast cancer

Breast cancer that wasn’t detected until it had spread to another part of the body. “De novo” means from the beginning.

Disease free survival

In cancer, the length of time after primary treatment for a cancer ends that the patient survives without any signs or symptoms of that cancer. In a clinical trial, measuring the disease-free survival is one way to see how well a new treatment works. Also called DFS, relapse-free survival, and RFS.

DNA

DNA stands for Deoxyribonucleic Acid. They are the molecules inside cells that carry genetic information and pass it from one generation to the next.

E

ECG (electrocardiogram)

An electrocardiogram (ECG) is a simple test that can be used to check your heart’s rhythm and electrical activity. Sensors attached to the skin are used to detect the electrical signals produced by your heart each time it beats. These signals are recorded by a machine and are looked at by a doctor to see if they’re unusual. An ECG may be requested by a heart specialist (cardiologist) or any doctor who thinks you might have a problem with your heart, including your GP. Your clinician may want to take your baseline ECG before starting you on medication. This is to see if the medication presents any changes to your result.

Endocrine (hormone) therapy

Treatment that adds, blocks, or removes hormones. For certain conditions (such as diabetes or menopause), hormones are given to adjust low hormone levels. Hormones can also cause certain cancers (such as prostate and breast cancer) to grow. To slow or stop the growth of cancer, synthetic hormones or other drugs may be given to block the body’s natural hormones, or surgery is used to remove the gland that makes a certain hormone. Also called hormonal therapy, hormone therapy, and hormone treatment.

Event free survival

In cancer, the length of time after primary treatment for a cancer ends that the patient remains free of certain complications or events that the treatment was intended to prevent or delay. These events may include the return of the cancer or the onset of certain symptoms, such as bone pain from cancer that has spread to the bone. In a clinical trial, measuring the event-free survival is one way to see how well a new treatment works. Also called EFS.

F

Fatigue

Extreme tiredness and an inability to function due to a lack of energy.

G

Gene

Pieces of DNA that contain information for making a specific protein.

Grade

Cancer grade is a way to describe how abnormal cancer cells look under a microscope. It also indicates how fast the cancer is likely to grow and spread.

• Grade 1: Low grade cancer cells look similar to normal cells and grow slowly
• Grade 2: Intermediate grade cancer cells look different from normal cells and grow faster than grade 1
• Grade 3: High grade cancer cells look very different from normal cells and grow quickly

H

Hormone

Chemicals that carry messages through your blood to your organs, skin, muscles and other body parts. These signals tell your body what to do and when to do it.

Hormone receptors

Structures on the cell surface that respond to signals from outside the cell and sometimes allow substances inside. Hormone receptors are tuned to specific hormones. However, these receptors can also respond to drugs or toxins, if they have similar chemical shape to a target hormone.

HER2/neu

A gene that is linked to cancer growth and may be found in unusually high levels in some women with breast cancer.

HER2+/human epidermal growth factor receptor 2-positive

Describes cells that have a protein called HER2 on their surface. In normal cells, HER2 helps control cell growth. Cancer cells that make too much HER2 may grow more quickly and are more likely to spread to other parts of the body. Checking to see if a cancer is HER2 positive may help plan treatment, which may include drugs that kill HER2-positive cancer cells. Cancers that may be HER2 positive include breast, bladder, pancreatic, ovarian, and stomach cancers. Also called c-erbB-2 positive and human epidermal growth factor receptor 2-positive.

HER2-/human epidermal growth factor receptor 2-negative

Describes cells that have a small amount or none of a protein called HER2 on their surface. In normal cells, HER2 helps control cell growth. Cancer cells that are HER2 negative may grow more slowly and are less likely to recur (come back) or spread to other parts of the body than cancer cells that have a large amount of HER2 on their surface. Checking to see if a cancer is HER2 negative may help plan treatment. Cancers that may be HER2 negative include breast, bladder, ovarian, pancreatic, and stomach cancers. Also called human epidermal growth factor receptor 2-negative.

HR+/hormone receptor-positive

Describes cells that have a group of proteins that bind to a specific hormone. For example, some breast cancer cells have receptors for the hormones oestrogen or progesterone. These cells are hormone receptor-positive and they need oestrogen or progesterone to grow. This can affect how the cancer is treated. Knowing if the cancer is hormone receptor-positive may help plan treatment.

HR-/hormone receptor-negative

Describes cells that do not have a group of proteins that bind to a specific hormone. For example, some breast cancer cells do not have receptors for the hormones oestrogen or progesterone. These cells are hormone receptor-negative and they do not need oestrogen or progesterone to grow. This can affect how the cancer is treated. Knowing if the cancer is hormone receptor-negative may help plan treatment.

(Histologic) grade

How different your cancer cells are visually compared to normal healthy cells. The greater the difference between cancer cells and normal cells, the higher the grade.

I

Immune system

A complex network of cells, tissues, organs, and the substances they make that helps the body fight infections and other diseases. The immune system includes white blood cells and organs and tissues of the lymph system, such as the thymus, spleen, tonsils, lymph nodes, lymph vessels, and bone marrow.

L

Lymph node

Glands found throughout the body which defend the body from foreign invaders, such as bacteria. If cancer cells are found in the lymph nodes, it may suggest that cancer has spread beyond the breast.

M

Malignant

Malignant tumours are cancerous. Cells that are malignant grow uncontrollably and can invade nearby tissue and spread to other parts of the body.

Menopause

Menopause is when your periods stop due to lower hormone levels. This usually happens between the ages of 45 and 55. It can sometimes happen earlier naturally or for reasons such as surgery to remove the ovaries (oophorectomy) or the uterus (hysterectomy), cancer treatments like chemotherapy, or a genetic reason. Sometimes the reason is unknown.

Mutation

Any change in the DNA sequence of a cell. Mutations can have a positive effect, a negative effect, or no effect. Some mutations may lead to cancer or other diseases.

O

Objective response rate

The total number of people whose cancer has either gone away (a complete response) or shrunk (a partial response). A result of partial response means the cancer has shrunk by at least one third (30%) and there are no signs the cancer has grown anywhere else in the body. Whilst a result of ‘complete response’ means there are no signs of cancer on scans or tests.

Oestrogen

A type of hormone made by the body that helps develop and maintain female sex characteristics.

Overall survival

The length of time from either the date of diagnosis or the start of treatment for a disease, such as cancer, that patients diagnosed with the disease are still alive. In a clinical trial, measuring the overall survival is one way to see how well a new treatment works. Also called OS.

P

Primary

Primary breast cancer is breast cancer that has not spread beyond the breast or nearby lymph nodes. It’s the original tumour that develops in the breast. 

Progesterone

Progesterone is a hormone involved in the menstrual cycle and pregnancy. It can also be made in the laboratory. It may be used as a type of birth control and to treat menstrual disorders, infertility, symptoms of menopause, and other conditions.

Progression

In medicine, the course of a disease, such as cancer, as it becomes worse or spreads in the body.

Progression-free survival

The length of time during and after the treatment of a disease, such as cancer, that a patient lives with the disease but it does not get worse. In a clinical trial, measuring the progression-free survival is one way to see how well a new treatment works. Also called PFS.

Q

Quality of life (QoL)

Quality of life (QoL) is a concept which aims to capture the well-being, whether of a population or individual, regarding both positive and negative elements within the entirety of their existence at a specific point in time. For example, common facets of QoL include personal health (physical, mental, and spiritual), relationships, education status, work environment, social status, wealth, a sense of security and safety, freedom, autonomy in decision-making, social-belonging and their physical surroundings.

R

Recurrence

When cancer comes back after successful treatment.

Distant recurrence

Return of cancer in a different place to where it was first found.

Local recurrence

Return of cancer in the same place as or near where it was first found.

Regional recurrence

Return of cancer near where it was first found.

Metastasis/Secondary breast cancer/Advanced breast cancer

The spread of cancer beyond where it was first found and nodes in the armpit (axillary nodes).

Risk factor

A health risk is the chance that something will affect your health. A risk factor is anything that increases your chances of something happening, for example your risk of recurrence.

S

Secondary breast cancer

The name for breast cancer that has spread to other parts of the body, such as the bones, the liver, lungs or brain. It can also be referred to as stage 4 or metastatic breast cancer.

Stage

The size and spread of your cancer. Tumours that have a larger size or have spread to other sites in the body have a higher stage.

T

Targeted therapy

A type of treatment that uses drugs or other substances to find and attack specific types of cancer cells with less harm to normal cells.

Time to progression

The length of time from the date of diagnosis or the start of treatment for a disease until the disease starts to get worse or spread to other parts of the body. In a clinical trial, measuring the time to progression is one way to see how well a new treatment works. Also called TTP.

TNBC / Triple-negative breast cancer

A type of breast cancer in which the tumour cells do not have oestrogen receptors(ER), progesterone receptors (PR), or large amounts of HER2/neu protein on their surface. Knowing whether breast cancer is triple negative is important in planning treatment. Also called ER-negative PR-negative HER2/neu-negative breast cancer and TNBC.

Tumour

An abnormal mass of tissue that forms when cells divide more than they should or do not die when they should. Tumours may be benign (not cancer), or malignant (cancer).

Tumour genotype

The genes and gene variations carried by your cancer cells; this is different to your germline genotype which is inherited from your parents.