Understanding Hodgkin's Disease - Treatment

How Do I Know If I Have Hodgkin's Disease?

The diagnosis of Hodgkin's disease can only be made by a tissue biopsy. If you have an enlarged, painless lymph node that your doctor suspects may be due to Hodgkin's disease, you will need to have a biopsy of this node. This can be done by cutting into the node to remove a sample of tissue or by removing the entire node.

If a biopsy reveals that you do have Hodgkin's lymphoma, you may need additional tests, including blood tests, bone marrow biopsy, chest X-ray, computed tomography (CT) scan, magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scan, bone scans, or spinal tap (lumbar puncture). Tissue samples may be sent to laboratories for further testing.

These tests will give your doctor important information that can help determine the best type of therapy for your disease. Your doctor will designate a stage that describes the severity and spread of your lymphoma.

What Is the Stage?

The prognosis and specific treatment used to treat Hodgkin's depends on the stage of the disease or how widespread the disease is.

Stage I. Hodgkin's disease is found in only 1 lymph node area or has extended locally into adjacent tissue.

Stage II. Hodgkin's disease is found in 2 or more lymph node areas on the same side of the diaphragm (the muscle beneath the lungs that moves up and down to help you breathe) or the cancer extends from the lymph node(s) to adjacent tissue.

Stage III. Hodgkin's disease is in lymph nodes on both sides of the diaphragm, or the cancer may also have extended to an area or organ adjacent to the lymph node and/or to the spleen.

Stage IV. Hodgkin's disease has spread to 1 or more organs outside the lymphatic system such as the bone marrow or liver.

Progressive or Recurrent Hodgkin's Disease. Progressive disease is the term used when the disease progresses while you are still being treated. Recurrent disease means that Hodgkin's disease has come back after it has been treated. This may occur shortly after treatment or years later

What is the Treatment?

The goal of treatment is to get rid of the cancer cells with as little damage as possible to normal cells, while also limiting difficult side effects of treatment. Talk with your doctor about any side effects you experience.

The most common treatments for Hodgkin's disease include chemotherapy drugs, often with radiation therapy (using a focused beam of radiation) to kill cancer cells. Other drug therapies used to boost the immune system include interferon and monoclonal antibodies.

Chemotherapy and high-dose radiation kill bone marrow cells responsible for producing red and white blood cells and platelets. Therefore, your doctor may recommend that you undergo a transplant of bone marrow or stem cells. First, normal stem cells or bone marrow will be taken from your body before you undergo chemotherapy or radiation. The stem cells or bone marrow are then frozen and saved and returned to your body intravenously after your treatment

Survival

The five-year survival rate refers to the percent of patients who live at least five years after their cancer is treated. Many of these patients live longer than five years.

Stage 1: 90%-95%

Stage II: 90%-95%

Stage III: 85%-90%

Stage IV: about 80%