Lymphoma

A life with Lymphoma

It seems everywhere we turn cancer is affecting someone we know. Lymphoma is a cancer that affects more and more Australian lives every year and nobody really knows why. We don’t know what causes Lymphoma but we do know that it is the most common form of blood cancer. Australia has one of the highest incidences of Lymphoma (doubling over the last 30 years) of any country in the world.

What kind of cancer is Lymphoma and how does it differ from other types?

President of the Lymphoma Research and Support Association, Sharon Millman, describes Lymphoma as cancer of the cells of the immune system. “This is made up of bone marrow, spleen, thymus gland, lymph nodes tonsils, appendix and a few other organs. Lymph nodes are white, bean shaped nodules within the lymphatic system,” says Millman.

The term ‘Lymphoma’ encompasses a general group of cancers that originate in the lymphatic system. These Lymphomas are divided into two categories: Hodgkin’s Lymphoma and all other Lymphoma, which are labeled Non-Hodgkin’s Lymphoma (NHL).

“The Hodgkin’s Lymphoma has the presence of one characteristic type of cell, known as the Reed Sternberg cell. Lymphomas without this typical microscopic appearance are known as Non-Hodgkin’s Lymphoma,” says Millman. There are more than 30 different sub types of NHL.

Lymphoma is the sixth most common cancer in women and the fifth most common cancer in men. Millman says that in Australia, 4000 new patients are diagnosed with the disease each year, a figure that is predicted to rise by 30 per cent by 2011.

Of the 4000 Australians diagnosed, only ten per cent will have the better-known Hodgkin’s Lymphoma. The major difference between the two is that Hodgkin’s Lymphoma can be cured. About 90 per cent of all people diagnosed with this type of cancer are completely cured. When it comes to NHL, a lot of the different strands are curable, so hope and chance of survival shouldn’t be ruled out.

Beverley Sparks is an academic at Queensland’s Griffith University. As far as successful women go, she definitely qualifies. She was at an exciting point in her career, travelling overseas frequently, running the department she works in and generally enjoying her successful efforts. After an episode of hospital admissions in 2004, she was diagnosed with NHL. It was found in her abdomen and it was thought that her tumour was growing for several years before being noticed. At the time Beverley was 47, fit, healthy and otherwise in fantastic health.

“After I was diagnosed I started chemotherapy pretty much straight away, which lasted for about six months,” she says. For Beverley, chemotherapy was very important because of the nature of Lymphoma. Being a blood cancer meant that operating on the growth in her abdomen simply would not be enough. She followed her chemotherapy with immunotherapy treatment (which targets cancer cells specifically without annihilating good blood cells like chemotherapy does). She is now in remission and since then has had a stem cell harvest as a precaution in case she relapses.

What’s interesting about Beverley’s story is that she got through the whole ordeal with a remarkable amount of strength. She worked throughout her chemotherapy treatment. Although she took days off now and then, when she was actually having treatment performed, she tried to maintain her working life. Although she said it was incredibly hard at times (because chemotherapy makes you feel incredibly sick and tired), Beverley tried to keep herself alive by actually living her life. She looked upon her disease in the most positive way she possibly could. She joined support groups so she could meet others who were also going through what she was and she surrounded herself with people that gave her hope and inspiration to use in her own life. “You just have to hope and believe that you can get through this. What else do you have?” she says.

As her chemotherapy finished, Beverley decided it was time to reward herself for getting through her ordeal with some life changing experiences. She went to a health farm in Queensland where she learnt to treat her body with natural remedies as an ongoing part of her treatment. “I feel these therapies give you a good sense of control and while there is no magical cure, the more you do to support your body the better off you’ll be in the long run,” she says.

During her chemo Beverley believed she was going to get through it all. She remained whole-heartedly positive about it all and set herself some goals for when it was all over. She went on a weeklong bike ride through Italy and has since done a similar thing in France.

Although we don’t know what causes Lymphoma, there are some common symptoms that one can look out for. These include:
• Swollen lymph nodes
• Fevers and night sweats
• Tiredness and weight loss
• Itchy and inflamed skin
• Nausea, vomiting and abdominal pain
• Shortness of breath and coughing
• Headaches, seizures and problems with vision
• Anaemia
• Susceptibility to infections

“However, some patients experience no symptoms at all, and since the symptoms are common to many conditions, such as colds and viruses, diagnosis of NHL can often be difficult. Diagnosis is confirmed following a biopsy,” says Millman.

It doesn’t affect men any differently to the way it affects women. It is interesting to note however, that African and Asian countries are least affected by the disease, with European countries ahead of that and then America and Australia coming in first.

Fortunately for us, treatment for this disease is getting better.

“Treatment options have improved significantly in recent years and people are now living longer with a better quality of life. Last year, approval was granted for the drug MabThera as a front line treatment in combination with chemotherapy for Australians with low grade NHL.

This treatment creates hope for a greater chance of survival and longer remission times for low-grade NHL patients,” says Millman.

Since going into remission, Beverley has chosen to take a step back in her working life. She no longer goes on regular overseas travel for work-related purposes and she has taken on less stress inducing responsibilities in the office. Now, she says it’s more important for her to do things that keep her healthy and keep her life as stress free as possible. She rides her bike regularly, eats well and follows a natural life as much as she can. “I re-evaluated my life and tried to work with what I had,” she says.

Perhaps it was her positive attitude that got her through her treatment, or maybe she was really lucky that her body actually responded to her treatment. Something Beverley could teach everyone though is that hope and belief in yourself can get you through almost anything.



- story by Nikki Blunt,
originally in Women's HEALTH & Fitness March 2007