Terminology I

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IMAGING TESTS - A variety of tests that produce pictures of the inside of the body to help diagnose and stage a cancer.

IMMUNE SYSTEM - A complex network of organs, cells, and specialized substances distributed throughout the body that defend it from foreign organisms that cause infection or disease.

IMMUNIZE - To render highly resistant to a disease because of the formation of antibodies and/or cellular immunity.

IMMUNOTHERAPY - An experimental method of treating cancer that stimulates the body’s immune defense system to identify and attack the cancer cells.

IMPOTENCE - Inability to have an unassisted erection. Also called erectile dysfunction..

INCONTINENCE - Inability to control the flow of urine from the bladder (urinary incontinence), or the passage of feces from the intestines (fecal incontinence).

INFORMED CONSENT - The process in which a patient learns about and understands the purpose and aspects of a treatment or clinical trial and then agrees to participate.

INTERNAL RADIATION THERAPY (see BRACHYTHERAPY) - The placement of radioactive material inside an organ of the body to treat a cancer.