Read personal stories about lymphoma, detailing experiences with treatment and the path to recovery and remission.
Sheridan’s story
I noticed some weight loss and changes in bowel movements. An ultrasound showed it was non-Hodgkin lymphoma.
I considered briefly not having chemotherapy, as I had heard how awful it was. I’m glad I changed my mind because, for me, it was life-saving and managed well by the treatment team.
I had a catheter put into my upper chest after my first chemo, as my veins were small and it was difficult to get a cannula in. While it was painful to insert, the catheter turned out to be very useful.
Considerable advances have been made in the delivery of chemotherapy and, while it was unpleasant, side effects such as pain and nausea can be controlled.
When I was told I was in complete remission, I felt incredibly relieved.
Amy’s story
I was 40, fit, and working full-time when I was diagnosed with classical Hodgkin lymphoma.
The only symptom I noticed was a lump in my neck. I may not have thought anything of it, but it was on my radar because a colleague, who was the same age as me, had recently been diagnosed with Hodgkin lymphoma.
Waiting for the biopsy results was terrible. I was on holidays for the first 10 days, and tried to put it to the back of my mind. About 12 days after the biopsy, I called my GP and they tracked down the results.
The diagnosis of Hodgkin lymphoma came just as I was about to start IVF, so this felt like a double whammy. I spoke to my haematologist about delaying the start of my treatment until I could harvest some eggs. Fortunately, for my type of cancer, I was able to do this. My eggs were harvested on a Friday and I started chemotherapy on the following Monday.
I was on a clinical trial for a new combination of chemotherapy drugs that aimed to reduce the treatment time to only 3 months.
A port-a-cath was inserted so I didn’t need to have a cannula put in every time I had the chemo. I found the insertion painful, but it was beneficial to have the port throughout the treatment.
I continued working through the treatment, and this was challenging. The nausea and anxiety on treatment days did increase as each cycle progressed.
I found it difficult to manage, particularly on the second day of the chemo cycle when they give you a drug known as “the red devil”. I also had really low energy levels and needed a blood transfusion.
I am in clinical remission and my PET–CT scans have all shown that the treatment was successful. I’m still working and I’m back at the gym, but the brain fog is lingering.
Considerable advances have been made in the delivery of chemotherapy and, while it was unpleasant, side effects such as pain and nausea can be controlled.
Sheridan
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