Glossary
A - B - C - D - F - G - I - M - N - O - P - R - S - T
As used in this web site and other DiagnoCure documents, the following terms have the meanings specified below.
- Amplification
- A technique allowing the making of multiple copies of a gene or of any sequence of DNA.
- Biopsy
- Invasive procedure consisting of the removal of cells or tissues for examination under a microscope. When only a sample of tissue is removed, the procedure is called an incisional biopsy or core biopsy. When an entire tumor or lesion is removed, the procedure is called an excisional biopsy. When a sample of tissue or fluid is removed with a needle, the procedure is called a needle biopsy or fine-needle aspiration.
- Cancer
- A term for diseases in which abnormal cells divide without control. Cancer cells can invade nearby tissues and can spread through the bloodstream and lymphatic system to other parts of the body.
- Carcinoembryonic Antigen (CEA)
- A protein that can stimulate an immune response to certain tumors.
- Carcinogen
- Any substance that causes cancer.
- Chemotherapy
- Treatment with anticancer drugs.
- CLIA (Clinical Laboratory Improvement Amendments)
- The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) regulates all laboratory testing (except research) performed on humans in the U.S. through the Clinical Laboratory Improvement Amendments (CLIA). In total, CLIA covers approximately 200,000 laboratory entities. The objective of the CLIA program is to ensure quality laboratory testing.
- Clinical trial
- A study that tests how well new medical treatments or other interventions work in people. Each study is designed to test new methods of screening, prevention, diagnosis, or treatment of a disease.
- Deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA)
- Linear sequence of chemical building blocks of chromosomes that store hereditary features.
- Detection
- Technique allowing the detection of amplified RNA.
- Diagnosis
- The process of identifying a disease by the signs and symptoms.
- Diagnostics
- The art or practice of diagnosis -- often used in plural.
That part of medicine, which has to do with ascertaining the nature of diseases by means of their symptoms or signs. - DNA sequencing
- Determining the exact order of the base pairs in a segment of DNA.
- Food and Drug Administration (FDA)
- The United States regulatory body that oversees the drug and medical device development process. Most such products cannot be marketed for sale in the United States without FDA clearance or approval.
- Gene
- A gene occupies a certain location on a chromosome. It is a self-producing, ultramicroscopic structure capable under certain circumstances of giving rise to a new character, referred to as a mutation. Hereditary traits are controlled by pairs of genes in the same position on a pair of chromosomes.
- Genomics
Pertaining to the genome, all of the genetic information possessed by any organism. There are, for instance, the human genome, the elephant genome, the mouse genome, the yeast genome, etc. Humans and many other higher animals have two genomes, namely:
- A chromosomal genome which is in the nucleus of the cell; and
- A mitochondrial genome, which is outside the nucleus in the cytoplasm of the cell.
Together these two genomes make up the total genome. The study of a genome is called genomics.
- Guanylyl Cyclase C (GCC)
- Guanylyl cyclase C is a transmembrane receptor protein found exclusively in the lining of the intestine from the duodenum to the rectum. It is involved in multiple functions including water transport, crypt morphology and suppression of tumorigenesis.
- Incidence
- Number of new cases of a disease observed over a period of time.
- Marker
- A segment of DNA with an identifiable physical location on a chromosome whose inheritance can be followed. A marker can be a gene or a section of DNA with no function.
- Messenger Ribonucleic Acid (mRNA)
- Sequence of chemical molecules carrying the information of a gene and controlling the synthesis of a peptide (See also ribonucleic acid).
- Metastasis
- Cancer that is spread to a distant part of the body from its original site.
- Monitoring
- To watch, observe, or check closely or continuously the recurrence or evolution of a disease. Monitoring is a part of patient management.
- mRNA
- See Messenger Ribonucleic Acid.
- Nucleic acid
- A high-molecule-weight nucleotide polymer. There are two types: deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) and ribonucleic acid (RNA). Nucleic acids are the building blocks of genes.
- Oncology
- Branch of medicine that studies cancer.
- Pathology
- Branch of medicine that studies the essential nature of diseases and especially of the structural and functional changes produced by them.
- Prognosis
- A forecast of the probable course and/or outcome of a disease.
- Radiation therapy
- The use of high-energy radiation from X-rays, gamma rays, neutrons, and other sources to kill cancer cells and shrink tumors. Radiation may come from a machine outside the body (external-beam radiation therapy), or it may come from radioactive material placed in the body in the area near cancer cells (internal radiation therapy, implant radiation or brachytherapy). Systemic radiation therapy uses a radioactive substance, such as a radiolabeled monoclonal antibody, that circulates throughout the body. Also called radiotherapy.
- Reagent
- A substance used to produce a chemical reaction to detect, measure or produce other substances.
- Ribonucleic acid (RNA)
- RNA acts as a messenger, an intermediary, between DNA and protein. The DNA of the gene is transcribed into mRNA, which then is translated into the sequence of amino acids that make up a protein (See Messenger ribonucleic acid).
- Screening
- Checking for disease when there are no symptoms.
- Sensitivity
- The probability that a test result is positive given the subject has the disease. Also called true positive rate (equals true positive divided by the added true positives to the false negatives).
- Specificity
- The probability that a test result is negative given that the subject does not have the disease. Also called true negative rate (equals true negatives divided by the added true negatives and false positives).
- Stage
- The extent of a cancer, especially whether the disease has spread from the original site to other parts of the body. Staging evaluates the infiltration of the tumor in the tissues.
- Tumor
- A swelling or morbid enlargement; a new growth of tissue or neoplasm in which the multiplication of cells is uncontrolled and progressive. Often referring to cancer.