abscopal effect
(ab-SKOH-pul eh-FEKT)
Describes the shrinking or disappearance of tumors in parts of the body that were not the direct target of local therapy, such as radiation therapy. It is thought that in the abscopal effect, the immune system is stimulated to fight cancer in the whole body as a result of the local therapy. Learning more about the abscopal effect may help in the development of new cancer treatments, especially for metastatic cancer.