ABIM Med Oncology key terms

Laboratory determination of whether a breast cancer expresses estrogen and/or progesterone receptors, which predicts benefit from endocrine therapy and informs prognosis and treatment selection.

Assessment of human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 overexpression or gene amplification by immunohistochemistry and in situ hybridization, used to identify patients eligible for HER2-directed therapy.

A monoclonal antibody targeting HER2 that improves outcomes in HER2-positive breast and gastric cancers, with cardiotoxicity as a key adverse effect requiring cardiac monitoring.

Loss of tumor response to hormonal agents through mechanisms such as ESR1 mutations, receptor crosstalk, or alternate growth signaling, prompting use of targeted combinations or chemotherapy.

An oral agent (palbociclib, ribociclib, abemaciclib) that blocks cell-cycle progression in hormone receptor-positive breast cancer, typically combined with endocrine therapy and monitored for neutropenia.

Identification and removal of the first draining lymph node(s) using dye or radiotracer to stage the axilla with less morbidity than full axillary dissection.

Absence of residual invasive cancer in the breast and lymph nodes after neoadjuvant therapy, a favorable prognostic marker that may guide adjuvant treatment decisions.

Systemic or radiation treatment given before definitive surgery to shrink tumors, enable breast conservation, or assess treatment sensitivity in vivo.

Treatment given after definitive local therapy to eradicate micrometastatic disease and reduce recurrence risk, selected based on stage, biology, and patient factors.

An oral drug blocking mutant epidermal growth factor receptor signaling in non-small cell lung cancer, with efficacy depending on specific activating mutation and acquired resistance mechanisms.

A third-generation EGFR tyrosine kinase inhibitor used first-line in EGFR-mutant lung cancer and active against the T790M resistance mutation, with QT prolongation and cardiomyopathy as adverse effects.

An antibody blocking inhibitory receptors such as PD-1, PD-L1, or CTLA-4 to restore T-cell antitumor activity, used across many solid tumors and monitored for immune-related adverse events.

Autoimmune-mediated toxicity from checkpoint blockade affecting skin, gut, endocrine organs, liver, or lungs, managed with corticosteroids and sometimes additional immunosuppression.

A new genetic alteration arising during targeted therapy that allows tumor escape, such as EGFR T790M or ALK gatekeeper mutations, often guiding selection of next-line agents.

The number of somatic mutations per megabase of tumor DNA, a biomarker that may predict response to immune checkpoint inhibitors in selected cancers.

A hypermutable state caused by defective DNA mismatch repair, detectable by testing and predictive of response to immune checkpoint blockade regardless of tumor type.

Hereditary nonpolyposis colorectal cancer caused by germline mismatch repair gene mutations, conferring elevated risk of colorectal, endometrial, and other cancers.

A heritable genetic alteration present in all cells, identified through blood or saliva testing, that may indicate hereditary cancer predisposition and inform family screening.

A genetic alteration acquired in tumor tissue rather than inherited, detected by tumor sequencing and used to select targeted therapies.

A class of antimetabolites including 5-fluorouracil and capecitabine that inhibit thymidylate synthase and DNA synthesis, used widely in gastrointestinal cancers.

Inherited reduced activity of the enzyme that catabolizes fluoropyrimidines, predisposing to severe or fatal toxicity and warranting dose reduction or alternative therapy.

A platinum chemotherapy agent used in colorectal and other gastrointestinal cancers, causing cumulative sensory neuropathy and cold-induced paresthesias.

Chemotherapy-induced damage to peripheral nerves producing numbness, tingling, or pain, often from platinum agents or taxanes and requiring dose adjustment or supportive care.

A serum tumor marker elevated in hepatocellular carcinoma and some germ cell tumors, useful for diagnosis, prognosis, and monitoring treatment response.

The most common primary liver cancer, often arising in cirrhosis, diagnosed with imaging criteria and treated with resection, ablation, transplant, or systemic therapy.

A locoregional treatment delivering chemotherapy and embolic material into hepatic arteries to treat liver-confined tumors while sparing normal parenchyma.

A glycoprotein produced by prostate tissue and measured in serum for prostate cancer screening, monitoring, and detection of biochemical recurrence after treatment.

Suppression of testosterone production or action through GnRH agonists or antagonists, orchiectomy, or androgen receptor blockade, the backbone of advanced prostate cancer treatment.

Prostate cancer that progresses despite castrate testosterone levels, treated with novel hormonal agents, taxanes, radiopharmaceuticals, or other systemic options.

Rising tumor marker levels after definitive local therapy without radiographic evidence of disease, such as rising PSA after prostatectomy, prompting surveillance or salvage therapy.

A kidney cancer often driven by VHL pathway alterations, treated with immune checkpoint combinations or VEGF receptor tyrosine kinase inhibitors in advanced disease.

An agent blocking VEGF signaling to inhibit angiogenesis, used in renal, hepatocellular, and other cancers, with hypertension and thrombosis as common toxicities.

A germline or somatic alteration in BRCA1 or BRCA2 impairing homologous recombination DNA repair, conferring susceptibility to PARP inhibitors and platinum agents.

A drug blocking poly(ADP-ribose) polymerase, exploiting synthetic lethality in homologous recombination-deficient tumors and used in ovarian, breast, prostate, and pancreatic cancers.

Impaired high-fidelity DNA double-strand break repair from BRCA or other pathway gene alterations, a biomarker predicting sensitivity to PARP inhibitors and platinum chemotherapy.

Fever with severe neutropenia after chemotherapy, a medical emergency requiring prompt cultures and empiric broad-spectrum antibiotics and possibly growth factor support.

A growth factor stimulating neutrophil production, given prophylactically when febrile neutropenia risk is high or therapeutically to shorten neutropenia duration.

Metabolic emergency from rapid tumor cell breakdown causing hyperuricemia, hyperkalemia, hyperphosphatemia, and hypocalcemia, prevented with hydration and urate-lowering agents.

A recombinant urate oxidase that rapidly lowers uric acid in tumor lysis syndrome, contraindicated in G6PD deficiency and requiring avoidance of blood samples for uric acid measurement during infusion.

A targeted therapy linking a monoclonal antibody to cytotoxic payload, delivering chemotherapy selectively to antigen-expressing tumor cells while causing characteristic toxicities.

A taxane chemotherapy that stabilizes microtubules and blocks mitosis, used in breast, ovarian, lung, and other cancers, with neuropathy and myelosuppression as toxicities.

Study of how inherited genetic variation affects drug metabolism and toxicity, guiding dosing decisions such as thiopurine dosing in TPMT deficiency or fluoropyrimidine avoidance in DPYD deficiency.

A blood or tissue substance whose level correlates with tumor burden, used for monitoring response or recurrence but rarely sufficient alone for diagnosis.

Detection of tumor-derived material such as circulating tumor DNA in blood, used for genotyping, monitoring response, and detecting minimal residual disease.

Bone marrow suppression from cytotoxic therapy causing anemia, neutropenia, and thrombocytopenia, requiring monitoring and supportive interventions such as transfusions or growth factors.

Elevated blood pressure, a common on-target toxicity of VEGF pathway inhibitors requiring monitoring and antihypertensive treatment during therapy.

Interdisciplinary care focused on relieving symptoms and improving quality of life for patients with serious illness, provided alongside curative or disease-directed treatment.

Ongoing discussion and documentation of a patient's values and preferences for future medical care, including health care proxy designation and code status.

Comprehensive comfort-focused care for patients with limited life expectancy, typically delivered when disease-directed treatment is no longer pursued.

The ethical and legal process of disclosing risks, benefits, and alternatives so a patient can voluntarily authorize treatment or research participation.

A document summarizing cancer diagnosis, treatments received, potential late effects, and recommended surveillance, given to patients completing active treatment.