In medicine, the removal or destruction of a body part or tissue or its function. Ablation may be performed by surgery, hormones, drugs, radiofrequency, heat, or other methods. (NCI)

Radiation treatment in which the total dose of radiation is given over a shorter period of time (fewer days) compared to standard radiation therapy. (NCI)

Radiation treatment in which the total dose of radiation is divided into small doses and the treatments are given more than once a day. The total dose of radiation is also given over a shorter period of time (fewer days) compared to standard radiation therapy. (NCI)

Cancer that begins in cells that line certain internal organs and that have gland-like (secretory) properties. (NCI)

A type of cancer that contains two types of cells: squamous cells (thin, flat cells that line certain organs) and gland-like cells. (NCI)

Additional cancer treatment given after the primary treatment to lower the risk that the cancer will come back. Adjuvant therapy may include chemotherapy, radiation therapy, hormone therapy, targeted therapy, or biological therapy. Also called adjunct therapy or adjunctive therapy. (NCI)

Cancer that has spread to other places in the body and usually cannot be cured or controlled with treatment. (NCI)

A quickly growing cancer. (NCI)

Also called accelerated partial breast irradiation, is a hyperfractionated regime performed in five to 10 sessions (usually 10 sessions in 5 days). With APBI, the radiation is delivered at a higher overall dose rate over a shorter period of time compared to conventional radiation therapy.

A defect of the circulatory system where arteries and veins become tangled in a mass. Arteries carry oxygen-rich blood away from the heart to the body's cells; veins return oxygen-depleted blood to the lungs and heart. The presence of an AVM disrupts this vital cyclical process. Those located in the brain or spinal cord can have especially wid [..]