Hodgkin’s lymphoma is a cancerous disease with origins that are still relatively unknown but is understood …show more content…
The swelling itself is generally painless however, some people find that these lumps begin to ache. Other symptoms that are generally seen include: night sweats, a fever, unintentional weight loss; the feeling of breathlessness or coughing; itching of the skin; as well as pain in the area where a larger mass may have been found. If a person has advanced stages of HL, the disease can spread to the bone marrow and when this happens, you may experience problems with bleeding such as nose bleeds, tiredness and increased risk of …show more content…
These include, Radiotherapy, Chemotherapy, Steroids, Biological therapy, Stem Cell and Bone Marrow transplants. Chemotherapy is used when you have early stages of HL and you will be treated with 2 to 4 cycles of ABVD chemotherapy. The ABVD round include 4 drugs called Adriamycin, Bleomycin, Vinblastine and Dacarbazine. A is injected using an IV drip twice each cycle. B, V, D are injected into your bloodstream via a drip twice each cycle. Cycles are the rounds of treatments each lasting 4 weeks. A full cycle may last 4-6 months. Radiotherapy uses high energy rays that target a specific area to be treated and use radiation to destroy the cancer cells. The length of treatment can vary depending on the stage of HL you have. You are treated daily throughout the week. The steroids can be administered as tablets or injections. The tablets are given for you to take at home and are prescribed as prednisolone. The injections are usually administered alongside the chemotherapy to reduce sickness. The prescribed drug for the injections is dexamethasone. Biological therapy is used when previous treatments haven’t worked or the HL has returned after a period of remission. There are multiple steroids that can be taken to combat different stages. A steroid called Brentuximab which is used for those who have previously undergone treatment and it has returned and those who have been