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This question was closed without grading. Reason: No acceptable answer
Jun 28, 2012 23:57
12 yrs ago
English term

post-surgery standard radiation and chemotherapy

English Medical Medical: Pharmaceuticals
A translator whose judgment I generally trust translated the phrase "received post-surgery standard radiation and chemotherapy with drug X during this time" so that it means "received standard therapy (radiation and chemotherapy with drug X) during this time".

My approach is that when I'm not very confident that the source text is an error, I play it safe by sticking closely to it. I'm neither a brain surgeon nor a cancer physician.

I have no objection to the brackets, but I do ask myself (and you) whether these two phrases truly mean the same thing. What do you think?
Responses
4 tandard radiation and chemotherapy treatment after the surgery has been completed

Discussion

Samuel Murray (asker) Jul 3, 2012:
Thanks, Colin, Sanjeev and Tina, for your helpful answers.
dhsanjeev Jun 30, 2012:
The translated text is correct and it is clearly conveying the meaning without usage of brackets that the patient received standard therapy of radiation and chemotherapy with drug X
Samuel Murray (asker) Jun 29, 2012:
Sorry guys, I probably just forgot to add "post-surgery" into the example (but I'll take the hint and double-check if it has been omitted). Your other answers were very helpful, thanks. I have no problem with the brackets themselves -- the target language is less tolerant of long sentences, so mechanisms like bracket inserting or sentence splitting is commonly used.
Colin Rowe Jun 29, 2012:
In the original, "standard radiation and chemotherapy" clearly means "standard radiation *therapy* and chemotherapy", though the word "therapy" itself is omitted. The solution with brackets merely makes explicit that the "radiation" means "radiation therapy" (or "radiotherapy" in UK).

My only problem with the second rendering is that there is no longer any mention of "post-surgery", which I would have thought was important.
Tina Vonhof (X) Jun 29, 2012:
The same The two sentences do mean the same thing but I agree with you, why put something in brackets when it was not that way in the source text. Especially in a medical translation I would stick to the wording of the source text as closely as possible.

Responses

4 mins

tandard radiation and chemotherapy treatment after the surgery has been completed

that's the meaning IMO

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Note added at 5 mins (2012-06-29 00:03:45 GMT)
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and "standard" of course

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Note added at 6 mins (2012-06-29 00:04:16 GMT)
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i.e. post-surgery

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Note added at 8 mins (2012-06-29 00:06:10 GMT)
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"during this time" seems to refer to the entire treatment phase (including the post-surgery part)

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Note added at 15 mins (2012-06-29 00:13:58 GMT)
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and on the question of "radiotherapy" and "chemotherapy" they are quite different: "radiotherapy" involves ray treatnment whereas "chemotherapy" involves administering chemicals

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Note added at 17 mins (2012-06-29 00:15:33 GMT)
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so "drug x" only refers to the chemo part

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Note added at 18 mins (2012-06-29 00:16:32 GMT)
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not the radiology ... if that answers your question

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Note added at 20 mins (2012-06-29 00:18:01 GMT)
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and forgive the typos :)
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