Words You Might Encouter Concerning Prostate Cancer (6)

Words You Might Encouter Concerning Prostate Cancer (6)

IMPLANT: a device that is inserted into the body; e.g., a tiny
container of radioactive material inserted in or near a tumor; also a
device inserted in order to replace or substitute for an ability which
has been lost; for example, a penile implant is a device which can be
surgically inserted into the penis to provide rigidity for intercourse

IMPOTENCE: the inability to have or to maintain an erection

INCIDENTAL: insignificant or irrelevant; for example, incidental
prostate cancer (also known as latent prostate cancer) is a form of
prostate cancer which is of no clinical significance to the patient in
whom it is discovered

INCONTINENCE: (urinary incontinence) loss of urinary control; there
are various kinds and degrees of incontinence; overflow incontinence
is a condition in which the bladder retains urine after voiding; as a
consequence, the bladder remains full most of the time, resulting in
involuntary seepage of urine from the bladder; stress incontinence is
the involuntary discharge of urine when there is increased pressure
upon the bladder, as in coughing or straining to lift heavy objects;
total incontinence is the inability to voluntarily exercise control
over the sphincters of the bladder neck and urethra, resulting in
total loss of retentive ability

INDICATION: a reason for doing something or taking some action; also
used to mean the approved clinical application of a pharmaceutical

INFLAMMATION: any form of swelling or pain or irritation

INFORMED CONSENT: permission to proceed given by a patient after being
fully informed of the purposes and potential consequences of a medical
procedure

INTERFERON: a body protein that affects antibody production and can
modulate (regulate) the immune system

INTERLEUKIN: a blood protein that helps fight infection and cancer

INTERSTITIAL: within a particular organ; for example, interstitial
prostate radiation therapy is radiation therapy applied within the
prostate using implanted radioactive pellets or seeds; see also
brachytherapy

INTRAVENOUS (IV): into a vein

INVASIVE: requiring an incision or the insertion of an instrument or
substance into the body

INVESTIGATIONAL: a drug or procedure allowed by the FDA for use in
clinical trials

IVP: INTRAVENOUS PYELOGRAM; a procedure which introduces an X-ray
absorbing dye into the urinary tract in order to allow the physician a
superior image of the tract by taking an x-ray; used to check for the
spread of cancer to the kidneys and bladder

KEGEL EXERCISES: a set of exercises designed to improve the strength
of the muscles used in urinating

KETOCONAZOLE (HDK): high doses (400mg every 8 hours) shut down the
adrenal gland cortex, eliminating its production of testosterone; used
with LHRH agonist (e.g. Lupron) to eliminate essentially all
testosterone when CHT fails; hydrocortisone (HC) tablets must be taken
to replace the HC that the adrenal cortex also stops producing; HC is
essential to life and must not be stopped suddenly; E.J. Small et al.
Proceedings of ASCO Vol. 15 May 1996 abstract #657

KIDNEY: one of a pair of organs whose primary function is to filter
the fluids passing through the body

LAPAROSCOPY: a technique which allows the physician to observe
internal organs directly through a piece of optical equipment inserted
directly into the body through a small surgical incision

LATENT: insignificant or irrelevant; for example, latent prostate
cancer (also known as incidental prostate cancer) is a form of
prostate cancer which is of no clinical significance to the patient in
whom it is discovered

LEUPROLIDE ACETATE: a LHRH analog

LHRH: see luteinizing hormone releasing hormone LHRH ANALOGS (or
AGONISTS): Synthetic compounds that are chemically similar to
Luteinizing Hormone Releasing Hormone (LHRH), but are sufficiently
different that they suppress testicular production of testosterone by
binding to the LHRH receptor in the pituitary gland and either have no
biological activity and therefore competitively inhibits the action of
LHRH, or has LHRH activity that exhausts the production of LH by the
pituitary; used in the palliative hormonal treatment of advanced
prostate cancer and sometimes in the adjuvant and neoadjuvant hormonal
treatment of earlier stages of prostate cancer

LIBIDO: interest in sexual activity

LNCap: a line of human prostate cancer cells used in laboratory studies

LOBE: one of the two sides of an organ which clearly has two sides
(e.g., the prostate or the brain)

LOCALIZED: restricted to a well defined area

LUPRON: the USA trade or brand name of leuprolide acetate, a LHRH agonist

LUTEINIZING HORMONE RELEASING HORMONE: a hormone responsible for
stimulating the production of testosterone in the body

LYMPH (also LYMPHATIC FLUID): the clear fluid in which all of the
cells in the body are constantly bathed; carries cells that help fight
infection

LYMPH NODES: the small glands which occur throughout the body and
which filter the clear fluid known as lymph or lymphatic fluid; lymph
nodes filter out bacteria and other toxins, as well as cancer cells

LYMPHADENECTOMY: Also knows as a pelvic lymph node dissection, this
procedure involves the removal and microscopic examination of selected
lymph nodes, a common site of metastatic disease with prostate cancer;
this procedure can be performed during surgery prior to the removal of
the prostate gland, or by means of a small incision a "laparoscopic
lymphadenectomy" may be performed, a simple operation requiring only
an overnight stay in the hospital

LYMPHATIC SYSTEM: the tissue and organs that produce , store and carry
cells that fight infection; includes bone marrow, spleen, thymus,
lymph nodes, and channels that carry lymph fluid