Happening suddenly, then subsiding after a short period of time. Brief and severe.

A cancer that involves the cells lining the walls of many different organs of the body. It starts in glandular tissue or has a gland-like appearance. For example, it is a type of lung cancer that accounts for about one-quarter of all lung cancers. This cancer starts in the bronchial glands that are found in the mucous membrane lining the smaller airways.

A benign tumour (not a cancer) that starts in gland tissue or has a gland-like appearance. An adenoma may become malignant (cancerous) if it is not treated.

Treatment that aids or assists the main treatment, for example, adjuvant radiotherapy or chemotherapy may be used before surgery to shrink a tumour, or after the main treatment to eradicate any remaining cancer cells. Also called adjuvant therapy.

Cancer that has spread to other parts of the body and/or is unlikely to be cured.

A viral disease (HIV) transmitted in blood, semen and vaginal fluid that affects the body's immune system so that it can no longer fight disease. Because of the weakened immune system, normally mild infections take hold and become serious. Certain opportunistic cancers may occur, for example Kaposi's sarcoma and non-Hodgkin's lymphoma.

The long passage in which food passes through the body and is digested. The alimentary tract consists of the mouth and throat (pharynx), oesophagus, stomach, bowel (small and large intestine) and anus. Also called the alimentary canal, or digestive tract: see gastrointestinal tract, Diagram 1.

Loss of hair from the head or body. Alopecia often occurs as a result of chemotherapy. Hair lost in this way usually regrows after treatment is completed.

A reduction in the amount of haemoglobin in the blood, or a reduction in the number of red blood cells (which contain the haemoglobin). Anaemia decreases the amount of oxygen carried to the body's tissues. Anaemia may cause tiredness and fatigue, breathlessness, paleness and a poor resistance to infection.

A drug given to stop a person feeling pain, usually during a medical procedure. A local anaesthetic is injected to numb a limited area of the body, often to perform a biopsy. A general anaesthetic causes the person to lose consciousness. With a spinal anaesthetic (spinal block, epidural), the anaesthetic is injected into the space around the spinal cord to block all feeling from nerves below that area. Spinal anaesthetics are sometimes used to treat cancer pain.

A drug that is used to relieve pain. Some can also be given to reduce fever.

An x-ray of blood vessels which have been injected with dye. An angiography is a diagnostic test in which a radio-opaque dye is injected into the blood stream and x-rays are then taken. The dye makes the blood vessels show up on the x-rays, and any abnormal vessels can be seen. The x-ray is called an angiogram or, sometimes, an arteriogram.

A drug, for example, penicillin, used to treat diseases caused by bacteria. Some chemotherapy drugs are sometimes called anti-tumour antibiotics.

Part of the body's immune system. Antibodies are proteins made by the blood in response to an invader (antigen) in the body. They help protect against viruses, bacteria and other foreign substances. Each antibody only acts against one particular antigen, thus antibodies produced in response to, say, the mumps virus will defend the body against mumps, but no other disease.

A drug (or medicine) that helps to control nausea and vomiting, including that caused by cancer or its treatment.

A drug or ointment used to treat or prevent fungal infections such as Candida albicans. People receiving chemotherapy may be advised to use antifungals as a preventive measure.

Common antigens include viruses, bacteria, foreign cells, pollen, and dust. When antigens invade the body, the blood is stimulated to produce antibodies to fight them. This reaction is part of the body's immune system.

The opening at the end of the anal canal through which faeces (bowel motions) are passed. See Diagram 1.

The brownish or pink area that surrounds the nipple of the breast.

A chronic lung disease caused by breathing in asbestos fibres.

A buildup of fluid in the abdomen, making it swollen and bloated, which can be caused by the presence of cancer within the abdomenal cavity.

1. Inhaling or breathing something other than air into the lungs (when something 'goes down the wrong way').
2. Removing fluid or air from within the body by sucking it through a needle into a syringe. Fluid may be aspirated from a breast lump. This fluid is usually examined under a microscope to provide an accurate diagnosis.

A condition that can occur in the lining of the milk ducts in the breast. Sometimes called ductal hyperplasia with atypia.

Armpit. Axillary lymph nodes are located deep in the armpit.

Removal of the axillary lymph nodes during breast cancer surgery.