Antiangiogenic therapy

Angiogenesis is the creation of new blood vessels. The term comes from 2 Greek words: angio, meaning "blood vessel," and genesis, meaning "beginning."

Normally, this is a healthy process. As the human body grows and develops, it needs to make new blood vessels to get blood to all of its cells. As adults, we don't have quite the same need for making new blood vessels, but there are times when angiogenesis is still important. New blood vessels, for instance, help the body heal wounds and repair damaged body tissues.

But in a person with cancer, this same process creates new, very small blood vessels that provide a tumor with its own blood supply and allow it to grow.

Anti-angiogenesis is a form of targeted therapy that uses drugs or other substances to stop tumors from making new blood vessels. Without a blood supply, tumors can't grow.