What is treatment procedure of Adult Hodgkin Lymphoma?

What is treatment procedure of Adult Hodgkin Lymphoma?

Adult Hodgkin lymphoma may be grouped for treatment as follows:

Early Favorable

Early favorable adult Hodgkin lymphoma is stage I or stage II, without risk factors that increase the chance that the cancer will come back after it is treated.

Early Unfavorable

Early unfavorable adult Hodgkin lymphoma is stage I or stage II with one or more of the following risk factors that increase the chance that the cancer will come back after it is treated:

• Having a tumor in the chest that is larger than 1/3 of the width of the chest or is at least 10 centimeters.
• Having cancer in an organ other than the lymph nodes.
• Having a high sedimentation rate (in a sample of blood, the red blood cells settle to the bottom of the test tube more quickly than normal).
• Having three or more lymph nodes with cancer.
• Having B symptoms (fever for no known reason, weight loss for no known reason, or drenching night sweats).

Advanced

Advanced Hodgkin lymphoma is stage III or stage IV. Advanced favorable Hodgkin lymphoma means that the patient has 0–3 of the risk factors below. Advanced unfavorable Hodgkin lymphoma means that the patient has 4 or more of the risk factors below. The more risk factors a patient has, the more likely it is that the cancer will come back after it is treated:

• Having a low blood albumin (protein) level (below 4).
• Having a low hemoglobin level (below 10.5).
• Being male.
• Being aged 45 years or older.
• Having stage IV disease.
• Having a high white blood cell count (15,000 or higher).
• Having a low lymphocyte count (below 600 or less than 8% of the white blood cell count).

Recurrent Adult Hodgkin Lymphoma

Recurrent adult Hodgkin lymphoma is cancer that has recurred (come back) after it has been treated. The cancer may come back in the lymph system or in other parts of the body.

There are different types of treatment for patients with adult Hodgkin lymphoma.

Different types of treatment are available for patients with adult Hodgkin lymphoma. Some treatments are standard (currently used treatment), and some are being tested in clinical trials. A treatment clinical trial is a research study meant to help improve current treatments or obtain information on new treatments for patients with cancer. When clinical trials show that a new treatment is better than the standard treatment, the new treatment may become the standard treatment. Patients may want to think about taking part in a clinical trial. Some clinical trials are open only to patients who have not started treatment.

For pregnant women with Hodgkin lymphoma, treatment is carefully chosen to protect the unborn baby. Treatment decisions are based on the mother’s wishes, the stage of the Hodgkin lymphoma, and the age of the unborn baby. The treatment plan may change as the signs and symptoms, cancer, and pregnancy change. Choosing the most appropriate cancer treatment is a decision that ideally involves the patient, family, and health care team.

Patients with Hodgkin lymphoma should have their treatment planned by a team of health care providers with expertise in treating lymphomas.

Treatment will be overseen by a medical oncologist, a doctor who specializes in treating cancer. The medical oncologist may refer you to other health care providers who have experience and expertise in treating adult Hodgkin lymphoma and who specialize in certain areas of medicine. These may include the following specialists:

• Radiation oncologist.
• Rehabilitation specialist.
• Hematologist.
• Other oncology specialists.