Axilla
The underarm area

Aromatase Inhibitor
(Arimidex, Femara, Aromasin) antiestrogen pill used to treat post menopausal women who have estrogen and/or progesterone receptor positive, invasive breast cancer.

Aspiration
The withdrawal of fluid or tissue with a small needle into a syringe.

Benign
Non-cancerous

Biopsy
The removal of a small amount of tissue or the entire abnormality for analysis under a microscope.

Breast Cyst
Fluid filled sac in the breast tissue. When the fluid is aspirated, the cyst will be gone.

Calcifications
Small deposits of calcium in the breast tissue which can be seen on mammograms. These calcifications are determined by the radiologist to be in one of the following 3 categories:

    Benign – routine follow up
    Probably benign – more frequent follow up
    Indeterminate or suspicious – requires biopsy

Carcinoma
A form of cancer that develops from epithelial cells that line many different organs of the body (e.g. skin, uterus, ovaries, lungs, breast)

DUCTAL CARCINOMA IN SITU (DCIS)- early form of cancer which arises from the duct cells in the breast. This abnormal proliferation of cancer cells is confined to the walls of the duct structure and therefore, usually does not spread outside of the breast. Also referred to as NONINVASIVE DUCT CELL CARCINOMA or INTRADUCTAL CARCINOMA

LOBULAR CARCINOMA IN SITU (LCIS) – Also commonly referred to as LOBULAR NEOPLASIA. This is a premalignant condition that forms in the milk-producing lobules of the breast. This diagnosis places the patient at a higher risk of developing breast cancer in the future, but, in itself, is not treated as a malignant condition.

INVASIVE (INFILTRATING) DUCT CELL CARCINOMA - A form of cancer that arises from the duct cells in the breast, but has spread to the surrounding tissues. This type of tumor is capable of spreading to other parts of the body.

INVASIVE (INFILTRATING) LOBULAR CARCINOMA- A form of cancer that arises from the milk-producing lobules of the breast, but has spread to the surrounding tissues. This type of tumor is capable of spreading to other parts of the body.

Chemotherapy
Treatment with anti-cancer drugs.

Core Needle Biopsy
The use of a small core needle to take samples of the abnormal tissue for microscopic evaluation.

Ductal Carcinoma In Situ
Cancer that arises from the duct cells but has not left the duct. Also referred to as intraductal carcinoma or non-invasive carcinoma. A purely intraductal carcinoma will not leave the breast.

Fibroadenoma
Solid, benign breast mass.

Fine Needle Aspiration
The use of a slender, fine needle to remove cells. These cells are put onto slides and sent to the pathologist for review under the microscope.

Hormone Therapy
(ANTI-HORMONE THERAPY, ENDOCRINE MANIPULATION) Treatment of cancer by removing, blocking or adding hormones.

Lobular Carcinoma In Situ
A pre-malignant condition that forms in the lobules of the breast. This diagnosis puts the patient at higher risk for breast cancer in the future.

Lumpectomy
Surgical removal of the malignant tumor and a border (margin) of normal breast tissue. This procedure is then followed by radiation therapy. Lumpectomy can also be referred to as partial mastectomy, segmental resection, excisional biopsy, or breast conserving surgery.

Lymphedema
Swelling in the arm or hand caused by the accumulation of excess fluid. This may occur from scarring of the lymphatic channels after surgery or radiation therapy.

Lymph Nodes
Bean-shaped organs which act as filters of debris and cancer cells from the channels of the lymphatic system. These are located all throughout the body and serve an immune function. The specific lymph nodes of interest related to breast cancer are located in the armpit (axillary) , above the collar bone (supraclavicular), and under-neath the breast bone (internal mammary).

Malignant
Cancerous.

Mammogram
X-ray of the breast.

Margin
The area of tissue surrounding a tumor when it has been surgically removed.

Metastasis
The spread of cancer cells from one part of the body to another part of the body through the lymphatic system or blood stream.

Modified Radical Mastectomy
The removal of the majority (98%) of the breast tissue, the nipple, the areola, and two-thirds of the axillary lymph nodes.

Needle Localization
A procedure in which a radiologist targets a breast tumor (or calcifications) with a thin guide wire. This allows the surgeon to accurately remove a nonpalpable tumor at the time of surgery. The localization procedure may be accomplished with sonographic, mammographic, or stereotactic guidance using a local anesthetic, usually on the day of surgery.

Oncologist
A doctor who specializes in treating cancer.

Medical Oncologist – doctor who treats cancer with chemotherapy and hormonal therapy

Radiation Oncologist - doctor who treats cancer with radiation therapy

Surgical Oncologist – doctor who treats cancer surgically

Palpable
Readily felt with the hands on examination.

Partial Breast Irradiation (PBI)
"Investigational" Method of trating a patient with local radiation therapy after a lumpectomy. This technique only treats the lumpectomy site rather than the entire breast (standard treatment).

Pathology
The study and diagnosis of disease by examining samples of tissue underneath the microscope.

Prophylactic Mastectomy
Surgical removal of the breast that is not known to contain breast cancer.

Prosthesis
An artificial breast form worn inside a bra after a mastectomy.

Radiation Therapy
Treatment with high-energy radiation rays to kill cancer cells.

Sentinel Lymph Node(s)
The first node(s) to which breast cancer cells are most likely to metastasize from the breast.

Simple Mastectomy
The complete removal of the breast tissue, the nipple, and the areola.

Sonography
A procedure in which sound waves determine the density of a mass. (solid or fluid filled).

Stereotactic Biopsy
The removal of a small amount of tissue with a technique that uses special mammographic views, a computer, and a needle to pinpoint a target area in the breast. This technique is usually utilized to biopsy calcifications or other tiny abnormalities that can only be detected mammographically.

Tamoxifen
(Nolvadex) – an "antiestrogen" pill often given to slow or stop tumor growth. It is commonly used for treatment of patients with breast cancers that express estrogen and/or progesterone receptor activity. More recently, Tamoxifen has been used as a "chemopreventive" agent to reduce the risk of developing breast cancer in some women who have not been diagnosed with the disease.