Learning the Language

Terms for different types or approaches to treatment:

First-line Therapy: Initial cancer treatment. Second-line therapy may follow if the first line is not successful, and so on.
Neoadjuvant Therapy: Treatment given before the primary treatment.
Adjuvant Therapy: Treatment given after the primary treatment to increase the chances of a cure.
Multi-modality or combined and modality Therapy: Treatment using a combination of chemotherapy, surgery, radiation therapy, and/or targeted therapy.
Palliative Therapy: Treatment that is given to relieve symptoms, provide better quality of life, and perhaps extend life when cure is not probable.

Terms for the different types of responses to treatment:

Complete response, apparently cancer-free, or No Evidence of Disease (N.E.D): On the x-ray or imaging scan, the tumor appears to be completely gone as a result of treatment.
Partial response: The tumor has shrunk in size by at least 30%.
Stable Disease: The tumor did not grow or shrink much.
Progressive Disease: The tumor is growing in spite of the treatment you received. When this happens, that specific therapy is usually stopped or modified in some way.