OCN key terms

A written summary given after active cancer treatment that reviews the cancer, treatments received, possible late effects, recommended follow-up tests, and healthy-living guidance.

Testing people without symptoms to find cancer or precancerous changes early, when treatment is more likely to succeed; examples include mammography, colonoscopy, and cervical cytology.

An ongoing process of discussing and documenting a person's values and preferences for future medical care, often including a health care proxy and advance directive.

Comfort-focused care for a person with a life-limiting illness and a prognosis of about six months or less if the disease follows its usual course; family support is included.

Coordinated planning and support when a patient moves between settings, such as hospital to home or home to hospice, aimed at preventing gaps, errors, and avoidable readmissions.

A system that describes cancer extent using T for primary tumor size and invasion, N for regional lymph node involvement, and M for distant metastasis; stage guides prognosis and treatment.

A scale from 0 to 5 describing how well a person carries out daily activities, from fully active to death; clinicians use it to judge prognosis and treatment eligibility.

The process of giving a patient clear information about a proposed test or treatment, including purpose, risks, benefits, and alternatives, so they can decide voluntarily whether to proceed.

Sequential research stages: phase I tests safety and dosing, phase II looks at activity, phase III compares with standard treatment, and phase IV monitors long-term effects after approval.

A meeting where surgeons, medical and radiation oncologists, pathologists, radiologists, nurses, and others review a patient's cancer and agree on a coordinated treatment plan.

Individualized assistance that helps patients overcome barriers such as transportation, insurance, scheduling, and communication so they can complete diagnosis and treatment on time.

Treatment with drugs that damage rapidly dividing cells, including cancer cells and normal tissues such as bone marrow, hair follicles, and gut lining, which explains many side effects.

The lowest blood cell count after chemotherapy, usually occurring about 7 to 14 days after treatment; it is the period of greatest infection and bleeding risk.

A drug or fluid that can cause severe tissue damage, blistering, or necrosis if it leaks outside a vein during infusion.

Radiation delivered from a machine outside the body and aimed at a tumor; treatment is painless but can cause local skin, fatigue, and site-specific side effects.

Drugs designed to attack specific molecules or pathways that drive cancer growth, often causing less damage to normal cells than traditional chemotherapy but with distinct side effects.

Treatment that helps the immune system recognize and attack cancer, such as checkpoint inhibitors; it can cause immune-related adverse events affecting skin, gut, lungs, liver, and endocrine organs.

Inflammatory side effects from checkpoint inhibitor therapy that can affect almost any organ, including colitis, pneumonitis, hepatitis, and thyroiditis; early recognition and steroid treatment are important.

Infusion of stem cells to restore marrow function after high-dose chemotherapy or radiation; it may use the patient's own cells (autologous) or a donor's cells (allogeneic).

Care focused on relieving symptoms and improving quality of life for people with serious illness, offered alongside curative treatment and appropriate at any stage.

The outcomes a patient values most for their care, such as comfort, independence, or length of life; these guide treatment decisions and are revisited as illness changes.

A temporary flare of pain that occurs despite otherwise controlled background pain; it may be triggered by activity or occur spontaneously and is often treated with short-acting opioids.

A need for a higher opioid dose to achieve the same pain relief, or reduced effect from the same dose, after repeated use; it is not the same as addiction.

Painful inflammation and ulceration of the mouth and gastrointestinal lining, commonly caused by chemotherapy or radiation; it can impair eating and increase infection risk.

Nausea and vomiting caused by chemotherapy, classified as acute, delayed, or anticipatory; prevention with guideline-based antiemetics is more effective than treating it after it starts.

A persistent, distressing sense of tiredness related to cancer or its treatment that is not relieved by rest and interferes with usual function; it is managed with activity and other strategies.

Fever plus a low neutrophil count, a medical emergency requiring immediate cultures and broad-spectrum antibiotics because infection can progress rapidly.

A metabolic emergency after rapid cancer cell breakdown, causing high potassium, high phosphate, low calcium, and kidney injury; prevention with hydration and monitoring is key.

Blockage of the superior vena cava by tumor or clot, causing facial and upper-body swelling, distended neck veins, and sometimes difficulty breathing; it may require urgent treatment.

Pressure on the spinal cord from a tumor or collapsed vertebra, causing back pain, weakness, numbness, or bowel and bladder changes; urgent imaging and steroids are needed to prevent paralysis.

A high blood calcium level caused by cancer, leading to confusion, constipation, weakness, dehydration, and kidney problems; treatment includes fluids and drugs that lower calcium.

Leakage of a vesicant drug or fluid into tissue around an infusion site, causing pain, blistering, and tissue death; stop the infusion and follow the drug-specific antidote protocol.

A life-threatening organ dysfunction caused by a dysregulated response to infection; in neutropenic patients it can progress quickly and requires urgent antibiotics and fluids.

An unpleasant emotional, psychological, social, or spiritual experience that can interfere with coping and treatment; it is screened routinely and treated with support, counseling, or medication.

A mood disorder with persistent sadness, loss of interest, sleep and appetite changes, and hopelessness; it is common in cancer and is not a normal unavoidable part of illness.

The physical, emotional, financial, and social strain experienced by family or friends caring for a person with cancer; assessment and support for caregivers are part of oncology care.

Actions taken before cancer treatment to protect a person's ability to have children, such as sperm banking, egg or embryo freezing, or ovarian suppression; discussion should happen early.

Distress about changes in appearance or function from cancer or treatment, such as hair loss, scars, ostomy, or weight change; it can affect relationships, sexuality, and self-esteem.

The emotional response to loss, including sadness, anger, guilt, and yearning; in cancer care it may be anticipatory before a death or occur after bereavement.