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Radiation Therapy Glossary
The following definitions are meant to help you understand words you may read or hear in relation to radiation therapy. They are intended as an aid but not as a substitute for explanations you may need from health care providers.
Ablation- Surgical removal.
Adjuvant therapy- Treatment that is used in addition to primary therapy to enhance it.
Alopecia- Hair loss.
Anesthetic- A substance that prevents or dulls the sensation of pain.
Biopsy, incisional- A surgical procedure in which the tissue sample intended for study and identification by the pathologist is only a section, or slice, of what is abnormal and a sample of nearby normal-appearing tissue.
Biopsy, excisional- A surgical procedure in which the tissue sample intended for study and identification by the pathologist may be a sample or the entire abnormal growth (tumor) with a margin of normal-appearing tissue.
Biopsy- Proven A term describing disease that has been identified by a pathologist who examined a tissue sample.
Brachytherapy- A type of radiation therapy in which radioactive material is placed permanently or temporarily on the body, within a cancerous growth, or within a body cavity near the tumor.
Brachytherapy- high-dose rate remote A type of brachytherapy in which the radioactive source is removed between treatments.
Cancer- A term used to describe many different diseases, all of which are characterized by perpetual abnormal cell growth and division, infiltrating locally by invasion and remotely by metastasis.
Chemotherapy- Treatment of disease with drugs.
Collimator- Multileaf Unit that shapes radiation by computer digitization, replacing custom blocking. A further refinement of this device is called the miniature multileaf collimator.
Conformal therapy- A type of radiation therapy in which computer control of the radiation's shape and beam angle makes it conform to the tumor's height, width, and depth, diminishing the radiation delivered to normal tissues.
Critical structures- Normal tissues or organs near the tumor whose preservation limits the amount of radiation that can be administered.
Definitive- A term used to describe radiotherapy meant to eradicate disease.
Diagnostic radiologist- A physician who specializes in administering and interpreting such tests as X-ray studies, computerized tomography (or CAT) scans, or ultrasonography studies.
Dietitian- A specialist in proper nutrition.
Dosimetrist- Someone who calculates radiation therapy doses.
Electron beam- Radiation therapy made up of a stream of fast-moving electrons.
Electrons- Used for external-beam radiotherapy or brachytherapy, these negatively charged subatomic particles are administered by machines that accelerate them.
Field, radiation- The area to be treated by radiotherapy.
Fractionation- The practice of dividing a determined dose of radiation into fractions, usually administered once or twice daily.
Gamma knife- A method of single-session radiation therapy in which high-energy rays eradicate brain tumor cells as they hit the tumor from many angles.
Gamma rays- A type of electromagnetic radiation used in external-beam radiation and brachytherapy.
Gray- A measure of absorbed radiation.
Hyperfractionation- A method of dosing radiation therapy in which small amounts of radiation are administered more frequently than once per day.
Immobilization device- An apparatus that prevents movement in the treatment position.
Intensity-modulated radiotherapy- A type of three-dimensional conformal radiotherapy whose path changes to match the shape of the tumor and whose intensity varies to match its depth.
Interdisciplinary- Involving two or more disciplines.
Interstitial- Between structures or within them.
Intracavitary radiation- Term used to describe radioactive sources placed within body cavities for therapeutic effect.
Intraoperative radiation- Radiation therapy administered during an operation.
Linear accelerator- A machine that makes electrons move faster, producing X rays or electrons to be used in radiation therapy.
Medical oncologist- A physician who specializes in treating cancer with chemotherapy.
Metastasis- The transfer of disease of one type from one site in the body to one or more unconnected sites.
Multidisciplinary- Involving two or more disciplines.
Oncologist- A physician who specializes in treating cancer.
Palliation- Therapy not meant to cure but to ease symptoms.
Portal- Treatment field.
Quality of life- Subjective sense of well-being.
Radiation oncologist- A physician whose specialty is treating cancer with radiation.
Radiation physicist- A person who usually holds a doctoral degree who ensures that the machines used in radiation therapy administer the right amount to patients and who, with the radiation oncologist, calculates the proper dose for individual patients.
Radiation therapist- A person specially trained to administer radiation therapy.
Radiation therapy- An intervention to eradicate cancer cells that employs high-energy electron, neutron, and proton beams for treatment from sources outside the body and radioactive implants for treatment within the body.
Radiosurgery- See Stereotactic radiation therapy.
Simulation- The process of locating and marking the treatment field to be targeted in radiation therapy.
Simulator- Diagnostic radiography unit mounted on gantries that mimic a treatment machine's range of motion and positions.
Stereotactic radiation therapy- Sometimes called radiosurgery, this technique delivers a well-defined, narrow beam of high-dose radiation therapy to places difficult to reach and treat.
Surgery, reconstructive- A type of plastic surgery that restores the shape of a body area to normal.
Three-dimensional conformal radiation therapy- A technique of radiation therapy administration in which computer-driven equipment controls the shape of the beam and delivers the beam precisely, sparing normal tissue.
Treatment field- The area exposed to a single radiation beam.
X rays- Electromagnetic radiation made up of highly accelerated electrons moving in a linear stream.
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