Glossary & Terms

Androgen: A steroid hormone, such as testosterone or androsterone, which controls the development and maintenance of masculine characteristics.

Antibodies: Proteins generally found in the blood that detect and destroy invaders, like bacteria and viruses.

Bio(medical) Imaging: The science and the branch of medicine concerned with the development and use of imaging devices and techniques to obtain internal anatomic images and to provide biochemical and physiological analysis of tissues and organs.

Biomarker: A protein measured in blood whose concentration reflects the severity or presence of some disease state.

Cellular Biology: The study of cells, especially their function, structure, components, formation, life cycle, and their interaction with the internal or external environments.

Chemotherapeutic: A chemical agent or drug used to kill cancerous cells.

Companion Diagnostic: A biomarker assay that serves to qualify a patient for treatment with a particular drug.

Endometriosis: A medical condition medical condition in which cells from the lining of the uterus (endometrium) appear and flourish outside the uterine cavity, most commonly on the ovaries.

Epigenetics: A rapidly growing research field that investigates heritable alterations in gene expression caused by mechanisms other than changes in DNA sequence.

Follicle Stimulating Hormone: A hormone released from the pituitary gland in the brain that stimulates an egg follicle to grow each month as part of the menstrual cycle.

Hormone Refractory: Resistant to the effects of hormone therapy.

H Pylori: Helicobacter pylori, a bacterium that causes inflammation (gastritis) and ulcers in the stomach.

Molecular Biology: The study of biology on a molecular level including the structure, function, and makeup of biologically important molecules such as DNA,RNA, and proteins. The field of molecular biology involves many other areas of biology such as biochemistry and genetics.

Oncology: The field of medicine devoted to cancer.


Pharmacogenomics: The study of how variations in the human genome affect the response to medications.

Prostate-Specific Antigen: An enzyme secreted by the prostate gland, increased levels of which are found in the blood of patients with cancer of the prostate

Signalling Pathways: The relaying of molecular signals (for example, as contained in a hormone) or physical signals (for example, sensory stimuli) from a cell’s exterior to its intracellular response mechanisms.
