I try to describe the terms in posts and comments, but some people had suggested a glossary of cancer terms and abbreviations that are commonly used here, on slides, doctor’s notes, etc. This is my first attempt to develop something fairly comprehensive, but I’m sure this isn’t everything. Please add your suggestions for terms or topics that would be helpful to add to this.

Once we get it pretty settled, we’ll make it a permanent link from throughout the site that people can access if they encounter an abbreviation or term that they don’t know.

Common Abbreviations/Glossary of Terms in Oncology

ADLs – activities of daily living

ANC – absolute neutrophil count, the absolute number of bacterial infection fighting blood cells – low means notably higher risk for infection

BAC – bronchioloalveolar carcinoma, a unique and uncommon subtype of lung cancer

CR – complete response (after treatment), leading to no evidence of disease (NED)

CT – computerized tomography, “cat scan”, a detailed look at the body at varying levels internally, “slice by slice”

CTCs – circulating tumor cells, in blood

CT/PET – a combined scan that does a simultaneous CT, which measures the shape and size of body structures, with PET, which measures metabolic activity. The images can then

CXR – chest x-ray

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