Palliative treatment helps to improve people’s quality of life by managing the symptoms of lymphoma without trying to cure the disease. Many people think that palliative treatment is for people at the end of their life, however, it can help people at any stage.
As well as slowing the spread of Hodgkin lymphoma, palliative treatment can relieve pain and help manage other symptoms. Treatment may include radiation therapy, chemotherapy or other medicines. If you are experiencing ongoing symptoms, you can ask for a referral to the symptom management or palliative care team.
Palliative treatment is one aspect of palliative care, in which a team of health professionals aims to meet your physical, emotional, cultural, spiritual and social needs. The team also supports families and carers.
For more on this, see our general section on Palliative care and Living with advanced cancer.
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Prof Mark Hertzberg AM, Head, Department of Haematology, Prince of Wales Hospital; Dr Puja Bhattacharyya, Haematology Staff Specialist, Western Sydney Local Health District – Blacktown Hospital; A/Prof Susan Carroll, Senior Staff Specialist, Radiation Oncology, Royal North Shore Hospital and University of Sydney; Gerry Flanagan, Consumer; Alisha Ganesh, Haematology Clinical Nurse Consultant, Concord Repatriation General Hospital; Kelly King, Cancer Council Liaison, Central Coast Cancer Centre; Ilana Krug, Social Worker – Haematology and Oncology, Gosford Hospital; Amy McGee, Consumer.
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