Non Hodgkin Lymphoma Case Study
Hodgkin and Non-Hodgkin Lymphoma is a cancer that affects the white blood cells. This cancer attacks lymphocytes which are a vital part of the body’s immune system, which helps the body to fight infections and diseases. Patients with this type of cancer will typically have painless swelling of the lymph nodes. Hodgkin patients will experience this in lymph nodes in the neck, underarms and chest where as non-Hodgkin patients will have lymph nodes affects throughout the body. Both types of patients will have symptoms of weight loss, fevers and night sweats.
Both Hodgkin and non-Hodgkin cancer is considered invasive in the fact that it typically migrates within the body by the affected white blood cells traveling in the blood and lymphatic tissues. Metastasizes in lymphoma is a bit different from other cancers because tumors are not a common result of this type of cancer, however occasionally a tumor does result and it is normally found in the lungs, spleen or central nervous system.. …show more content…
A biopsy would be performed on a select section of tissues and then by examining the cancer cells under a microscope a physician can detect whether it would be Hodgkin or non-Hodgkin cancer.
In Hodgkin’s a specific type of an abnormal cell would be present called Reed-Sternberg where it would not be present in a non-Hodgkin patient. Physicians will determine a cancer stage which then aids in deciding the type of treatment that would be used and the patients prognosis. The progression of the disease is quite different, in Hodgkin lymphoma the cancer quite orderly spreads downward in a pattern from the initial site to each lymph node. In non-Hodgkin lymphoma 40% of the cases are not diagnosed until the patient has already reached stage IV and patients with this type of cancer do not have as favorable of a prognosis. Hodgkin lymphoma can usually be
cured.
Hodgkin and non-Hodgkin lymphoma is the most common blood cancer. Non-Hodgkin lymphoma is more common having 70,000 cases diagnosed each year; in comparison only 8,000 cases of Hodgkin lymphoma are detected yearly. Although it is a type of cancer that can affect anyone Hodgkin lymphoma is more common in individuals aged 15 – 24 and in people over 60. The average age of patients with non-Hodgkin cancer is 60 years old. Treatment of this type of cancer varies according to differing factors. Chemotherapy is the most commonly used form of treatment but patients could also be treated with radiation therapy, bone marrow transplants, and transfusions of blood products. The most common side effects are as a result of the fact that this type of cancer affects the body’s immune system. These patients are more prone to certain types of infections and must take precautions to avoid exposure to viruses, the flu and pneumonia. Other side effects are a result of the chemotherapy drugs which may suppress blood cell formation, cause infertility and less severe side effects such as fatigue, hair loss and general weakness.
Both Hodgkin and non-Hodgkin cancer is considered invasive in the fact that it typically migrates within the body by the affected white blood cells traveling in the blood and lymphatic tissues. Metastasizes in lymphoma is a bit different from other cancers because tumors are not a common result of this type of cancer, however occasionally a tumor does result and it is normally found in the lungs, spleen or central nervous system.. …show more content…
A biopsy would be performed on a select section of tissues and then by examining the cancer cells under a microscope a physician can detect whether it would be Hodgkin or non-Hodgkin cancer.
In Hodgkin’s a specific type of an abnormal cell would be present called Reed-Sternberg where it would not be present in a non-Hodgkin patient. Physicians will determine a cancer stage which then aids in deciding the type of treatment that would be used and the patients prognosis. The progression of the disease is quite different, in Hodgkin lymphoma the cancer quite orderly spreads downward in a pattern from the initial site to each lymph node. In non-Hodgkin lymphoma 40% of the cases are not diagnosed until the patient has already reached stage IV and patients with this type of cancer do not have as favorable of a prognosis. Hodgkin lymphoma can usually be
cured.
Hodgkin and non-Hodgkin lymphoma is the most common blood cancer. Non-Hodgkin lymphoma is more common having 70,000 cases diagnosed each year; in comparison only 8,000 cases of Hodgkin lymphoma are detected yearly. Although it is a type of cancer that can affect anyone Hodgkin lymphoma is more common in individuals aged 15 – 24 and in people over 60. The average age of patients with non-Hodgkin cancer is 60 years old. Treatment of this type of cancer varies according to differing factors. Chemotherapy is the most commonly used form of treatment but patients could also be treated with radiation therapy, bone marrow transplants, and transfusions of blood products. The most common side effects are as a result of the fact that this type of cancer affects the body’s immune system. These patients are more prone to certain types of infections and must take precautions to avoid exposure to viruses, the flu and pneumonia. Other side effects are a result of the chemotherapy drugs which may suppress blood cell formation, cause infertility and less severe side effects such as fatigue, hair loss and general weakness.