Children's Brain Tumour Research Centre, Glossary

Glossary

A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z

If you can’t find what you’re looking for, please go to CancerWEB'S on-line Medical Dictionary at http://cancerweb.ncl.ac.uk/omd/ for a more comprehensive dictionary of terms.

ACTH (adrenocorticotrophic hormone): A hormone that stimulates the adrenal gland to produce other hormones.
Adrenal gland: A pair of glands found above each kidney that secrete steroid hormones.
Adjuvant therapy: Cancer treatment which is given in addition to surgery when there is no longer detectable cancer remaining. This may be chemotherapy, radiotherapy or a combination.
Anaplastic: A term referring to rapidly dividing cells. They bear little or no resemblance to normal cells.
Angiogenesis: A new area of cancer research, which uses drugs to prevent new blood vessels forming at the tumour site, therefore causing the cancer cells to die.
Angiogram: An X-ray of blood vessels. The patient is injected with a dye to outline the vessels on the X-ray.
Antibody: A protein produced by cells of the immune system in response to infection.
Anti-convulsants: Medications used to treat or prevent seizures.
Anit-neuronal: Against cells of the nervous system.
Astrocytoma: A benign tumour derived from non-nervous cells (glia - the support cells of the nervous system). In adults astrocytomas are usually found in the cerebral hemispheres but in children they also occur in the cerebellum.

Benign: A benign tumour does not invade and destroy the tissue in which it originates or spread to other sites in the body i.e. it is non-cancerous.
Biopsy: The removal of a small piece of tissue from an organ or part of the body for microscopic examination. Biopsy is an important means of diagnosing cancer from examination of a fragment of a tumour. It is often carried out with a special hollow needle, inserted into the body, with relatively little discomfort to the patient.
Blood-brain barrier: A protective barrier formed by the blood vessels and glia of the brain. It prevents some substances in the blood from entering the brain.
Brachytherapy: A system of treatment in which radioactive pellets are placed near or in a brain tumour.
Brain stem: The part of the brain connected to the spinal cord.

Carcinogen: A cancer-causing chemical.
Carcinoma: A malignant growth (cancer) that arises from the epithelium found in skin or more commonly in the lining of body organs.
Carcinoma in situ: A cancer which has not spread.
Catheter: A plastic tube which drains fluid out of the body.
CAT Scan (Computerized Axial Tomography): This uses a rotating X-ray beam to create pictures of the body.
Cerebellum: The lower back part of the brain. It is involved in fine motor coordination and balance.
Cerebral hemispheres: The two halves of the cerebrum, the largest part of the brain.
Cerebral tumour: An abnormal multiplication of brain cells. This forms a swelling that either compresses or destroys the healthy brain cells and because of the rigid nature of the skull increases the pressure on the brain tissue.
CSF (cerebrospinal fluid): The clear watery fluid that is made in the ventricles and surrounds the brain and spinal cord. The brain floats in the fluid and is cushioned by it from contact with the skull when the head is moved vigorously.
Cerebrum: Is the largest and most highly developed part of the brain. It is made up of two hemispheres and is responsible for the initiation and coordination of all voluntary activity in the body. The cerebrum is involved in thinking, reasoning, learning and memory and is described as ‘the seat of all intelligent behaviour’.
Chemotherapy: A cancer treatment which uses anticancer drugs to kill cancer cells within the body. This treatment can be taken orally, or injected into a vein.
Clinical trial: A study which looks at a new treatment, or a certain aspect of a disease.
CNS (central nervous system): This refers to the nervous tissue of the brain and spinal cord.
Corticosteroids: Drugs used to decrease swelling (oedema) around tumours.
Cranial nerves: The 12 pairs of nerves that arise directly from the brain.
Craniotomy: An operation to make an opening in the skull.
Cushing's Syndrome: Caused by an increased concentration of the ACTH (adrenocorticotrophic) hormone in the bloodstream that is being produced by an adrenal gland tumour (adenoma).

Debulking: Removal of as much of the bulk of the cancer as is possible prior to other treatment such as chemotherapy.
Diplopia: Double vision.
Dura mater: The outermost, toughest and most fibrous of the three membranes (meninges) covering the brain and spinal cord.
Dysplasia: Abnormal cell development but not cancer.

EEG (Electroencephalogram): A tracing created by recording the electrical activity from different parts of the brain. The pattern of the EEG reflects the state of the patient’s brain and his/her level of consciousness in a characteristic manner.
Encapsulated: Refers to a tumour that is localized, or wholly confined to a specific area.
Encephalomyelitis: Inflammation of the brain and spinal cord, usually caused by viral, bacterial, fungal or parasitic agents.
Ependymomas: A cerebral tumour derived from glial (non-nervous) cells lining the cavities of the ventricles of the brain. They often cause hydrocephalus.

Gamma knife: A type of radiotherapy where the rays are aimed at a cancer from many angles in a single treatment - stereotactic radiosurgery.
Gene therapy: A new approach to treating cancer which is currently being researched.
Glial cells: Cells of the nervous system that nourish and support the nerve cells and the blood vessels that supply the nervous system.
Glioma: Any tumour arising from the glial cells or the supporting cells of the nervous system. Glial cells consist of astrocytes, ependymal cells and oligodendrocytes.
Grade: Cancer cells are graded according to how closely they resemble normal cells. The higher the grade the more likely the cancer is to grow and spread.
Growth factor: Substances which play a role in the development of blood cells.

Hemiparesi: Muscle weakness on one side of the body.
Hemiplegia: Complete paralysis of one side of the body.
Histology: The study of the appearance and nature of tissue. Usually carried out under a microscope by a pathologist.
Hormones: Substances which occur naturally in the body and which control the growth and activity of cells.
Hydrocephalus: Is an abnormal increase in the amount of cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) within the brain. It may happen if the outflow of cerebrospinal fluid is blocked by a tumour.
Hypothalamus: The area of the brain which controls body temperature, hunger and thirst.

IICP: Increased intracranial pressure.
Immunotherapy: A new area of cancer research which involves using the body's own immune system to attack cancer cells.
Intracranial: Within the skull.
Intrathecal chemotherapy: Anti-cancer drugs put into the thin space between the lining of the spinal cord and brain to treat or reduce the risk of cancers in the brain and spinal cord.

Lambert-Eaton Syndrome: A condition characterised by muscle weakness often associated with small cell cancer of the lung.
Lase: A technique using focused light to evaporate tumours during surgery.
Leukaemia: A disease in which the number of white cells in the blood is increased.
Lomustine: A chemotherapy drug given orally (by mouth).
Lumbar puncture: A procedure which removes a sample of cerebrospinal fluid (fluid which surrounds the brain and spinal cord) to look for evidence of cancer cells.

Malignant: A malignant tumour is fast growing (made of cells that divide and multiply very quickly). It will invade and destroy the tissue in which it originates and can spread to other parts of the body.
Margin: An area of normal tissue which is removed to ensure that all of the cancerous cells are taken away.
Marker: A product which is produced by cancer cells. In some cancers, tumour markers can be measured, and used to monitor growth of the cancer and discover whether the cancer is responding to treatment.
Medulloblastoma: A malignant brain tumour that occurs during childhood. It is derived from cells that have the potential to mature into neurones and develops in the cerebellum. Medulloblastoma is the second most common childhood cancer after leukaemia.
Metastasis: The spreading of a malignant tumour from its site of origin to a potentially distant site within the body.
Monoclonal antibody therapy: A new cancer treatment using special antibodies, which recognise cancer cells. These antibodies alert the body’s immune system to attack these cells.
MRI (Magnetic Resonance Imaging): A scanning technique used to diagnose and monitor brain tumours. With this technique magnetic fields, rather than radiation, are used to make a picture of an area of the body.

Neoplasm: A tumour, either benign or malignant.
Neuroendocrine tumour: Tumours derived from specialised nerve cells that often secrete hormones.
Neurologist: A doctor specialising in the diagnosis and the treatment of disorders and diseases affecting the brain, spinal cord and peripheral nerves.
Neurosurgeon: A doctor specialising in surgery on the brain, spine and other parts of the nervous system.

Oncogene: Fragments of genetic material (DNA) that have the potential to cause cancer.
Oncologist: A general term for doctors who specialise in treating cancer.
Optic nerve: The nerve responsible for sight.

Paediatric: Relating to the care and medical treatment of children.
Palliative treatment: Used to slow the progression of a cancer or to control any symptoms caused by the disease.
Papilloedema: Swelling of the optic nerve usually caused by intracranial pressure.
Paraneoplastic Syndromes: A variety of diseases found in patients with cancer. Usually caused by molecules produced by the tumour e.g. hormones.
Pathologist: A doctor who specialises in the diagnosis of disorders and disease by studying the tissues and fluids of the body.
PCV: This is a commonly used combination of the chemotherapy drugs Procarbazine, Lomustine and Vinicristine. (why PCV not PLV?)
PNET: Primitive neuroectodermal tumours (includes many forms of brain tumours e.g. medulloblastoma.)
PNS (Peripheral Nervous System): The cranial and spinal nerves and the autonomic nervous system.
Procarbazine: A chemotherapy drug which is given orally (by mouth).
Prognosis: The likely outcome of a disease, the chance of recovery.
Purkinje cell: A class of neuron (nerve cell) in the cerebellum.

Radiologist: A doctor specialising in the interpretation of X-rays, pictures and scans.
Radiotherapy: The treatment of disease with penetrating radiation, such as X-rays, beta rays or gamma rays. Beams of radiation may be directed at a diseased part from a distance, or radioactive material, in the form of needles, wires or pellets, may be implanted in the body. Many forms of cancer are destroyed by radiotherapy.
Recurrence: The reappearance of signs or symptoms of a disease (or tumour) after a period of remission.
Remission: The complete disappearance of any evidence of cancer.

Sensory neuropathy: A term denoting functional disturbances in the peripheral nervous system (PNS).
Shunt: A plastic catheter (tube) placed in a ventricle in the brain used to relieve the increased intracranial pressure caused by a build up of CSF.
Stereotactic radiosurgery: A single-dose focal radiation treatment in which many relatively weak doses of radiation are directed at a small target simultaneously, but from numerous points on the head. When these weaker beams converge at the site of the tumour, they deliver a high dose of radiation.
Steroid: Medications used to control the build up of fluid and the swelling of the brain, before or after surgery.
Supratentorial: Above the tentorium (a fold of the dura mater which separates the cerebellum from the cerebrum).

Tumour: Any abnormal swelling in or on a part of the body. The term is usually applied to an abnormal growth of tissue, which may be malignant or benign.
Tumour suppressor gene: A gene that encodes a product that normally negatively regulates the cell cycle and that must be mutated or inactive before a cell can proceed to rapid cell division that often leads to cancer.

Ultrasound: A diagnostic technique using sound waves to give a picture.

Ventricle: Small fluid-filled cavities within the brain. The site of production of cerebrospinal fluid.
Vinicristine: A chemotherapy drug given intravenously (into a vein).

White blood cell: Cells involved in defending the body against infections.