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Y Glossary Terms

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Y Glossary Terms (27)

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Yangona

Also Known As: Intoxicating Pepper, Kava Kava, Rauschpfeffer, And Tonga

Yangona is an herb native to South Pacific islands, also known as Intoxicating Pepper, Kava Kava, Rauschpfeffer, and Tonga. Traditionally, its root has been used to help relieve stress, anxiety, tension, sleeplessness, and menopause symptoms. It can interact with alcohol and some medicines, and the U.S. Food and Drug Administration warns it may cause serious liver damage. Always talk with your care team about its use.

Yeast

Yeast are tiny fungi found naturally on and inside the body. Some diets aim to reduce overgrowth of Candida yeast, which some believe may affect inflammation or symptoms during cancer treatment. It’s important to understand the term in context and talk with your care team about what it means for you, rather than seeing it as a diagnosis or treatment on its own.

Yeast Infection

A yeast infection happens when too much yeast grows in certain parts of the body, like the mouth, throat, or vagina, causing symptoms such as itching, redness, or white patches. People with weakened immune systems, including those undergoing cancer treatment, are more likely to get yeast infections. It’s important to understand this term in context and talk with your care team about what it means for you.

Yellow Fever

Yellow fever is a viral illness spread by mosquito bites. Symptoms include fever, chills, body aches, severe headache, weakness, and yellowing of the skin. In serious cases, it can cause bleeding, vomiting, and liver failure. If you see this term, ask your care team how it relates to your health, as it is not a cancer diagnosis or treatment by itself.

Yervoy

Also Known As: Ipilimumab, MDX-010

Yervoy (ipilimumab) is a cancer immunotherapy drug that helps the immune system attack cancer cells by blocking a protein called CTLA-4. It is used alone or with other medicines to treat several cancers, including melanoma, lung, kidney, liver, esophageal, and colorectal cancers. Yervoy may cause immune-related side effects and is often part of newer targeted treatment plans.

Yescarta

Also Known As: Axicabtagene Ciloleucel

Yescarta (axicabtagene ciloleucel) is a CAR T-cell therapy used to treat certain types of B-cell lymphoma in adults when other treatments have not worked or the cancer has returned. It uses a patient’s own immune cells, changed in a lab to better find and attack lymphoma cells. This treatment is given by infusion and is part of a newer approach to cancer care called immunotherapy.

Yin And Yang

Yin and yang are opposite but complementary forces from ancient Chinese philosophy. In traditional Chinese medicine, health depends on balancing these forces within the body. The term may appear in medical records or treatment plans, especially when discussing complementary approaches. It’s important to ask your care team what it means for your specific situation rather than treating it as a diagnosis or treatment by itself.

YKL-40

YKL-40 is a protein found at higher levels in the blood and tumor areas of some cancer patients. It is linked to inflammation and may affect how cancer cells grow and survive. For patients and caregivers, it’s important to understand YKL-40 as part of a bigger picture and to ask the healthcare team what it means for their specific situation.

YM598

YM598 is a substance being studied as a possible treatment for advanced prostate cancer and for pain caused when prostate cancer spreads to the bones. It belongs to a group of drugs called endothelin ETA receptor antagonists. If you see this term, it’s important to discuss with your care team how it might relate to your specific situation rather than assuming it is a diagnosis or treatment recommendation.

Yoga

Yoga is an ancient practice combining physical postures, breathing exercises, and meditation to help balance the mind and body. In cancer care, yoga is often used alongside medical treatment to help manage pain, stress, fatigue, sleep problems, and emotional challenges, improving overall quality of life. This entry helps connect the word with diagnoses, testing, treatments, supportive care, research notes, protocols, media, books, people, organizations, and safety concerns.

Yogic Sattvic Diet

The Yogic Sattvic Diet is a nutrition approach sometimes discussed in cancer care for supporting nutrition, digestion, immune health, and treatment tolerance. It is linked to claims about reducing inflammation and improving metabolic balance. Patients should review this diet with their healthcare team to ensure it fits safely with their cancer treatment and overall health needs.

Yohimbe

Also Known As: Johimbe

Yohimbe, also called Johimbe, is a tree native to West Africa. Its bark contains yohimbine, a chemical studied for sexual dysfunction. The bark is used in supplements for bodybuilding and male sexual performance. Yohimbe may interact with some medicines and can cause side effects. Patients should ask their care team how it relates to their care instead of assuming it is a treatment or diagnosis.

Yolk Sac Tumor

Also Known As: Endodermal Sinus Tumor

Yolk sac tumor, also called endodermal sinus tumor, is a rare cancer that starts in germ cells, which are cells that form sperm or eggs. It most often occurs in the ovaries or testicles but can also appear in other parts of the body like the chest, abdomen, or brain. These tumors tend to grow quickly and are the most common malignant germ cell tumor in children.

Yondelis

Also Known As: Ecteinascidin, ET 743, And Trabectedin

Yondelis, also known as trabectedin, ecteinascidin, or ET 743, is a chemotherapy drug used to treat certain soft tissue sarcomas like liposarcoma and leiomyosarcoma, especially when surgery isn’t an option or the cancer has spread. It is usually given after other chemotherapy treatments have been tried. Yondelis works by damaging cancer cells’ DNA to stop their growth.

Yonsa

Yonsa is a brand name for the drug abiraterone acetate, used to treat prostate cancer that has spread or is high-risk. It works by lowering male hormones like testosterone, which can help slow cancer growth. Yonsa is often given with other medicines, such as corticosteroids, and is used when cancer no longer responds to initial hormone-lowering treatments or when it is still sensitive to hormone therapy.

Yttrium

Yttrium is a rare metal that can be made radioactive and attached to special molecules called monoclonal antibodies. These molecules can find and stick to cancer cells, helping doctors diagnose or treat certain cancers. If you see the word yttrium in your care, it’s important to ask your medical team how it relates to your specific situation rather than assuming it means a particular diagnosis or treatment.

Yttrium Y 90

Yttrium Y 90 is a radioactive form of the rare metal yttrium used in some types of radiation therapy for cancer. It can be attached to special molecules called monoclonal antibodies that help it find and bind to cancer cells. This targeted approach may help deliver radiation directly to tumors. If you see this term, ask your care team how it relates to your specific situation.

Yttrium Y 90-Clivatuzumab Tetraxetan

Also Known As: Yttrium Y 90-DOTA Monoclonal Antibody Hupam4

Yttrium Y 90-clivatuzumab tetraxetan is a substance studied for treating advanced pancreatic cancer. It combines a monoclonal antibody that targets a protein called MUC-1 on some pancreatic cancer cells with a radioactive form of yttrium (Y 90) that may help kill cancer cells. It is a type of radioimmunoconjugate, meaning it links radiation to an antibody to target cancer cells more precisely.

Yttrium Y 90-DOTA Anti-CEA Monoclonal Antibody M5A

Yttrium Y 90-DOTA Anti-CEA Monoclonal Antibody M5A is a substance being studied to treat some types of cancer. It combines a monoclonal antibody that targets a protein called CEA on certain cancer cells with a radioactive material called yttrium Y 90. This combination may help deliver radiation directly to cancer cells. Patients should discuss with their care team what this term means for their specific situation.

Yttrium Y 90-DOTA Monoclonal Antibody Huafp31

Yttrium Y 90-DOTA Monoclonal Antibody HuAFP31 is a substance being studied to treat some cancers, including liver cancer. It combines a lab-made antibody that attaches to a protein called alpha fetoprotein (AFP) found on certain cancer cells with a radioactive material called yttrium Y 90. This combination may help target and kill cancer cells. Patients should discuss with their care team how this applies to their specific situation.

Yttrium Y 90-DOTA Monoclonal Antibody Hupam4

Also Known As: Yttrium Y 90-Clivatuzumab Tetraxetan

Yttrium Y 90-DOTA Monoclonal Antibody HuPAM4, also called Yttrium Y 90-Clivatuzumab Tetraxetan, is an experimental treatment studied mainly for advanced pancreatic cancer. It combines a lab-made antibody that targets a protein called MUC-1 on some pancreatic cancer cells with a radioactive substance (yttrium Y 90) to deliver targeted radiation aimed at killing cancer cells while limiting harm to healthy tissue.

Yttrium Y 90-Dota-Biotin

Also Known As: 90Y-DOTA-Biotin

Yttrium Y 90-DOTA-biotin is an experimental cancer treatment that links a radioactive substance called yttrium Y 90 to biotin, a molecule that binds tightly to streptavidin. This combination helps deliver radiation directly to cancer cells marked by antibodies, aiming to kill or damage tumors while sparing healthy cells nearby. It is studied mainly in clinical trials and is not yet a standard therapy.

Yttrium Y 90-Dota-Tyr3-Octreotide

Also Known As: Yttrium Y 90-Edotreotide, Yttrium Y 90-SMT 487

Yttrium Y 90-Dota-Tyr3-Octreotide is a substance studied for treating certain neuroendocrine tumors. It combines a molecule that targets tumor cells with a radioactive element called yttrium Y 90, which may help kill cancer cells. It may also be called Yttrium Y 90-Edotreotide or Yttrium Y 90-SMT 487. Patients should discuss with their care team what this term means for their specific situation.

Yttrium Y 90-Edotreotide

Also Known As: Yttrium Y 90-DOTA-Tyr3-Octreotide, Yttrium Y 90-SMT 487

Yttrium Y 90-Edotreotide is a substance studied for treating certain neuroendocrine tumors. It combines a molecule that targets tumor cells with a radioactive element called yttrium Y 90, which may help kill cancer cells. It may also be called Yttrium Y 90-DOTA-Tyr3-Octreotide or Yttrium Y 90-SMT 487. Patients should ask their care team how it relates to their specific situation.

Yttrium Y 90-Epratuzumab Tetraxetan

Yttrium Y 90-epratuzumab tetraxetan is an experimental treatment being studied for certain B-cell cancers. It combines a lab-made antibody called epratuzumab, which targets a protein on some cancer cells, with a radioactive substance called yttrium Y 90. This combination aims to deliver targeted radiation to help kill cancer cells. Patients should discuss with their care team how this treatment might relate to their specific situation.

Yttrium Y 90-Ibritumomab Tiuxetan

Also Known As: 90Y-Ibritumomab Tiuxetan, 90Y-Zevalin, And IDEC-Y2B8

Yttrium Y 90-Ibritumomab Tiuxetan, also known as 90Y-Zevalin or IDEC-Y2B8, is a targeted cancer treatment used with rituximab to treat certain types of B-cell non-Hodgkin lymphoma. It combines an antibody that attaches to cancerous B cells with a small amount of radiation to help kill them more effectively while aiming to limit damage to healthy tissue.

Yttrium Y 90-SMT 487

Also Known As: Yttrium Y 90-DOTA-Tyr3-Octreotide, Yttrium Y 90-Edotreotide

Yttrium Y 90-SMT 487 is a substance studied for treating certain neuroendocrine tumors. It combines a molecule that targets tumor cells with a radioactive element called yttrium Y 90, which may help kill cancer cells. It is also known by other names like Yttrium Y 90-DOTA-Tyr3-Octreotide and Yttrium Y 90-Edotreotide. Patients should talk with their care team to understand what it means for their specific situation.