Gastro-Oesophageal Cancer

Adjuvant (treatment)	Additional treatment given after the primary treatment to reduce the chance of the cancer coming back; usually refers to radiotherapy and/or systemic therapy after surgery
Anastomotic leak	A leak of contents from a surgical join, following a procedure to connect healthy sections of tubular structures in the body after the diseased portion has been surgically removed
Biopsy	A medical procedure in which a small sample of cells or tissue is taken for examination under a microscope
Bowel perforation	A hole in the wall of part of the gastrointestinal tract
Capecitabine	A type of chemotherapy that is administered orally
Chemoradiotherapy	Chemotherapy and radiotherapy given together
Chemotherapy	A type of cancer treatment using medicine that kills the cancer cells by damaging them so that they cannot reproduce and spread
Clinical trial	A study that compares the effects of one treatment with another
Coronavirus	A group of viruses that cause disease in mammals and birds but may also affect humans
COVID-19	A disease caused by a type of coronavirus called SARS-CoV-2
DNA	The chemical that carries genetic information in the cells of your body
Endoscopic	The use of a thin, tube-like instrument to look at tissues inside the body
Endoscopic ultrasound	A procedure in which an endoscope with an ultrasound probe and biopsy needle is inserted into the body to create an image by ultrasound and take a biopsy
First-line (treatment)	The initial treatment given to a patient
Fluorouracil	A type of chemotherapy that is administered through a drip into a vein in your arm or chest
Gastrointestinal (system)	The system of organs responsible for getting food into and out of the body and for making use of food to keep the body healthy – includes the oesophagus, stomach and intestines
Immunotherapy	A type of cancer treatment that stimulates the body’s immune system to fight the cancer
Intestinal occlusion	A partial or complete block of the small or large intestine that keeps food, liquid, gas and stool from moving through the intestines in a normal way
Intravenous	Administered into a vein
Laparoscopy	A procedure that involves the insertion of a thin, tube-like instrument with a light and a lens for viewing (laparoscope) through the abdominal wall to examine the inside of the abdomen and/or remove tissue
Maintenance therapy	Treatment that is given to help keep cancer from coming back after it has disappeared following the initial therapy
Metastatic	A cancer that has spread from its site of origin to different parts of the body
Microsatellite instability	A change that occurs in the DNA of certain cells (such as tumour cells) in which the number of repeats of microsatellites (short, repeated sequences of DNA) is different to the number of repeats that was in the DNA when it was inherited. The cause of microsatellite instability may be a defect in the ability to repair mistakes made when DNA is copied in the cell
Neoadjuvant (therapy)	Treatment given as a first step to shrink a tumour before the main treatment, which is usually surgery
Oxaliplatin	A type of chemotherapy that is administered through a drip into a vein in your arm or chest
Palliative	Treatment given to relieve symptoms and reduce the suffering caused by cancer
Peritoneal carcinomatosis	A rare type of cancer that can develop in the peritoneum (the thin layer of tissue that lines the abdomen and covers most of the abdominal organs) when gastrointestinal cancers spread
Peritonitis	Inflammation of the peritoneum, the tissue that lines the abdominal wall and covers most of the organs in the abdomen
Radiotherapy	Treatment involving the use of high-energy radiation, which is commonly used to treat cancer
Regimen	Treatment plan
Remission	A disappearance of the signs and symptoms of cancer
Resection	Surgery to remove tissue
Second-line (treatment)	The second treatment given to a patient once the initial (first-line) therapy has not worked or has been stopped because of the occurrence of side effects or other concerns
Stage or staging (of cancer)	The process of determining the extent to which a cancer has grown and spread
Stent	A small tube that is used to keep a tubular structure of the body open
Systemic (therapy)	Drugs that spread throughout the body to treat cancer cells wherever they may be. They include chemotherapy, targeted therapy and immunotherapy
Targeted therapy	A type of cancer treatment that uses drugs or other substances to precisely identify and attack cancer cells, usually while doing little damage to normal cells
Tumour	A lump or growth of abnormal cells. Tumours may be benign (not cancerous) or malignant (cancerous). In this guide, the term ‘tumour’ refers to a cancerous growth, unless otherwise stated

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