Adjuvant chemotherapy
chemotherapy given as an additional mode of treatment (often after or in conjunction with surgery), to help control microscopic disease that remains. The goal of adjuvant chemotherapy is to prevent recurrence of the cancer.
Neoadjuvant chemotherapy
chemotherapy given prior to surgery in an attempt to shrink the tumor, making the odds of successful surgery more likely.
First-line or standard chemotherapy
chemotherapy that has been tested in the clinical trial system, has met FDA approval standards for safety and effectiveness and has been determined to have the best results in treating a specific cancer. The combination of Alimta and Cisplatin is considered the best first-line treatment for mesothelioma.
Second-line chemotherapy
chemotherapy given after a first-line therapy has failed. Alimta/Cisplatin may be used as second-line therapy in treating non-small cell lung cancers.
Palliative chemotherapy
chemotherapy given for the purpose of treating symptoms of the cancer (such as pain or shortness of breath) without expectation of significantly reducing the tumor.
Combination chemotherapy
chemotherapy that uses more than one drug to kill cancer cells, with the goal of increasing effectiveness.
Single-agent chemotherapy
chemotherapy that uses only one drug to kill cancer cells. Alimta may sometimes be recommended as a single-agent for patients who are too elderly or frail to tolerate the combination of Alimta/ Cisplatin.
Chemotherapy cycle
the time between one treatment and the next. Alimta/Cisplatin is normally given in 21-day cycles.
Etanizadole
This is a pharmaceutical designed to make cancerous tumors more susceptible to radiation therapies. Etanizadole is also utilized as a medical imaging enhancement agent to help identify specific, drug resistant regions of tumors.
Median Survival
the length of time from initial diagnosis or beginning of treatment until death.
Protease Inhibitor
These recently developed pharmaceuticals are designed to combat HIV by preventing the production of protease, a specific component of the HIV virus that facilitates its replication in an infectious form that can spread to adjacent healthy cells. While lowering the level of HIV virus in the blood, protease inhibitors have also been shown to increase production of HIV fighting T4 blood cells.
Response Rate
the percentage of patients who experience shrinkage of the tumor, or where the disease is kept stable.
Therapeutic Ratio
This data compilation device seeks to quantify (through comparison) the amount of a beneficial agent that achieves its desired therapeutic result and the dosage required to produce toxic side-effects. Also known as a therapeutic index, a variety of therapeutic vs. toxicity dosage equations are utilized to achieve its clinical and/or laboratory-based conclusions.
Time to Progression
the length of time after diagnosis or beginning of treatment until the treatment is no longer effective or there is recurrence of the cancer.
