Lymphoma Chemotherapy
What is Lymphoma Chemotherapy
Lymphoma comes about when a type of white blood cell called a lymphocyte undergoes a change and begins to multiply crowding out normal cells. This creates tumors that enlarge the lymph nodes.
Lymphoma is often discovered by the enlargement of lymph node. Closely related to lymphoid leukemia this type of cancer starts off in the immune system and can spread quickly if not checked. Lymphoma is actually a generalized term for a group of cancers, which originate in the lymphatic system.
Lymphoma chemotherapy or a combination of chemotherapy and radiation is usually prescribed for treatment of this type of cancer. Much of what this therapy will entail depends on the type of lymphoma.
One of the most common types of this cancer is Hodgkin’s lymphoma. This disease is named after Thomas Hodgkin, who first discovered it in 1832. This type of lymphoma is characterized by the presence of Reed-Sternbergs cells and by the organized progression of the cancer through the lymph system. After the condition is diagnosed and a stage or progression of the disease is classified, lymphoma chemotherapy is often prescribed.
For those in the early stages of this cancer chemotherapy in combination with radiation therapy can be very effective. The choice will depend on a number of factors such as age, sex, weight, and subtype of the lymphoma. Patients in the later stages may be treated with a combination of chemotherapy by itself without radiation therapy. Any time a large mass is present in either the abdomen or chest both types of treatment will usually be undergone.
Chemotherapy is a treatment which uses chemicals to kill rapidly dividing cells in the body. As this type of therapy affects cell division lymphoma cancers can be very effectively treated. Because of treatments like lymphoma chemotherapy Hodgkin’s lymphoma is “now considered to be one of the most curable forms of cancer” according to The Leukemia and Lymphoma Society’s website.
According to their statistics while treatment outcomes vary the five-year survival rate for patients with this condition has increased from 40 percent in whites from 1960-1963 to 86 percent for all races in 1996-2004.