Cancer Horizons

What is Lymphoma – Lymphoma refers to a deadly cancer of your lymphatic system, including the spleen, glands, bone marrow, and lymph nodes (lymph glands). Lymphoma affects all of these areas alongside other organs of your body. i.e., affecting an integral part of your body’s overall germ-fighting network. In this article we attempt to discuss 

In fact, since this cancer resides within your lymph system, it quickly metastasizes and expands to various tissues/organs in your body. Typically, it spreads to your lungs or liver. While it’s possible to develop lymphoma at any change, it is common among children and young adults ranging from 15 to 24. Here we find out what lymphoma is, its signs and symptoms, causes, and risk factors:

The lymphatic system refers to a series of lymph vessels and nodes moving lymph fluid within your body. This fluid contains several cells combating diseases by capturing viruses and bacteria.

The lymph system plays an integral role in upkeeping your body’s immune system; however, lymph cells may become cancerous. Cancer occurring in your lymph system is known as lymphomas. Researches and doctors reveal that there are 

These are further divided into two main categories; non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma and Hodgkin’s lymphoma. It may affect any area of your lymphatic system, such as:

While the cause of lymphoma is yet to be found, this cancer kickstarts when an infection-fighting white blood cell (lymphocyte) develops a severe genetic mutation. The mutation commands the WBC to multiply rapidly, thus increasing the number of diseased lymphocytes rapidly.

This unfortunate mutation also enhances the lifespan of the cells. These cells can continue living for prolonged periods, leading to an accumulation of diseased lymphocytes in your lymph nodes. In turn, your lymph nodes, liver, and spleen end up swelling.

The symptoms of lymphoma resemble the symptoms of certain viral diseases. However, unlike the common cold and other viral infections, lymphoma lasts for a prolonged time.

Some patients who have lymphoma may not notice any symptoms; however, others may experience swelling. The swelling may occur in lymph nodes across your body, including your groin, armpits, neck, and abdomen.

The swelling often lacks pain and may start becoming painful as enlarged plans put pressure on other organs, bones, and so on. Often people confuse the symptoms of lymphoma with back pain. This overlap of symptoms may lead to a misdiagnosis.

Therefore, you should consult a doctor if you experience any of the following symptoms:

Pain in the lymph nodes upon consuming alcohol

 Lymphoma commonly occurs in children and young adults. However, certain types of lymphoma occur in children and young adults

Males are more likely to develop lymphoma

 People with immune system diseases or those taking drugs that decrease the performance of their immune system are more susceptible to lymphoma

 Nuclear radiations, as well as some agricultural chemicals, are known to cause Non-Hodgkin lymphoma

 Epstein-Barr virus is known to lead to mononucleosis. It, in turn, increases your risks of developing lymphoma

Lymphoma does not boast any screenings. Therefore, if you experience persistent symptoms resembling the symptoms of viral diseases, consider seeking medical help.

The doctor may question your family medical history to determine the exact cause and severity of your condition. In addition, they will conduct an in-depth physical examination where they inspect your neck, chin, groin, abdomen, and armpits to spot any swelling.

Lastly, your medical consultant may seek signs of infections in your lymph nodes to rule out the cause of the swelling.

By understanding what lymphoma is, it has become easier for people to identify the symptoms. Luckily, this type of cancer is often treatable. Typically the treatment plan for lymphoma depends on the type of lymphoma you’re suffering from and its severity. Your treatment plan may involve immunotherapy, chemotherapy, a bone marrow transplant, medications, and a combination of different treatments. We also have included 

important information about Stage 4 Lymphoma

 that will help a cancer patient navigate these tough waters.

There’s a chance the treatment plan may result in specific side effects. In case that happens, you should consider discussing it with your medical team to relieve symptoms. At the same time, you should ask your doctor about necessary changes to your diet and exercise plans to make you feel better.

Specific exercises like walking, swimming, and so on can help reduce nausea and fatigue occurring due to radiation and chemo. In addition, you can try alternative therapies like guided imagery, meditation, and biofeedback to lower pain levels.

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What is Lymphoma - Lymphoma refers to a deadly cancer of your lymphatic system, including the spleen, glands, bone marrow, and lymph nodes (lymph glands).

What is Lymphoma

Important Information About Stage 4 Lymphoma – Lymphoma, as the name, suggests that relates to your lymphatic system. The system comprises a network of lymph nodes and vessels specialized to drain lymphatic fluid. Mainly white blood cells and other defensive cells altogether called lymph fluid. It prevents bacteria, viruses, and other pathogens from spreading from one organ to another, like a filter.

Lymphoma is the cancer of all the defense cells present in lymphatic fluid. The staging of lymphoma depends upon how much it has metastasized. Stage 4 lymphoma is when it includes multiple organs. This article covers all the signs, symptoms, treatment, and prognosis of this 

It is the more severe form. It is very rare and affects almost 10% of people with lymphoma. The prognosis for Hodgkin’s lymphoma is poor.

Almost 90% of cases reported are NHL, the most common type. The treatment involves immunosuppressants and chemo if it is diagnosed early and the prognosis is very good.

Principally, the main difference between these types is the severity and involvement of cells. So, the metastasizing rate varies for each type, and so does the treatment. Both types include cells from the spleen, thymus, bone marrow, and other parts, along with lymph nodes.

The Lugano classification determines stages of lymphoma, depending on the meta-sizing. It is either localized, regional, or distant.

Localized: it only involves the lymph node of one area.

Regional: it involves lymph nodes of any two areas, along with the involvement of the relevant organ.

Distant stage: it is spread to any major organ, such as bone marrow, spine, lungs, or liver.

Uncontrolled proliferation of cells is cancer. Under normal circumstances, a cell life span is limited, and it is destroyed after that. However, cancer cells refuse apoptosis and grow to an extent where they start affecting normal physiological functions.

The main cause of lymphoma remains unknown. Although, some factors play a significant role in it, such as being older than 60 years and a family history of lymphoma. Moreover, a history of any disease like HIV, rheumatoid arthritis, celiac disease, hepatitis C, etc., can contribute to the development of the condition. The illnesses affecting the immune system also aggravate the risk of lymphoma. A history of radiation therapy or exposure to benzene-like chemicals can also exacerbate it.

At first, there are no signs or symptoms of lymphoma. Most of them are indistinctive, such as muscle fatigue, loss of appetite, weakness, rash, cough, etc. Often, people take it as a sign of the flu or common cold. Sometimes, an enlarged lymph node is silent, and patients do not know about it.

Hence, the symptoms go unnoticed. The findings are usually incidental, as your doctor might feel an enlarged lymph node while doing a general physical examination. It may be a small, soft, non-mobile, non-tender ball or swelling present in the neck, groin, armpits, posterior auricular area, etc.

Stage 4 lymphoma means that the cancerous cells are meta-sized to some major organs, including the spine, liver, or lungs. As the non-lymphatic organs are involved in stage 4 lymphoma, it may hinder normal physiological functions.

So, if you experience slight enlargement of any lymph node or group of nodes in the body, do not hesitate to visit your doctor or any nearest hospital.

A biopsy test is the most definite and accurate test to diagnose lymphoma. The process starts with a slight incision above an enlarged lymph node. Usually, a hemato-pathologist examines the specimen and determines if it is lymphoma.

Other tests are necessary for further evaluation and to determine the lymphoma stage as a complete blood picture and X-ray. Moreover, imaging techniques such as MRI and CT scans are important to determine the degrees of metastasized cancer.

Fortunately, the prognosis for stage 4 NHL is good. According to the American Cancer Society, if it is diagnosed at early stages, the prognosis is almost 65 percent.

According to the national statics of the UK,

About 80% of people survive their first year after the diagnosis.

Low-grade lymphomas can be dealt with, but it is difficult to eradicate them. On the other hand, aggressive lymphomas respond well to treatment, and the prognosis is better.

Firstly, you need to know that treatment varies from person to person. It entirely depends on the stages, signs, and symptoms. Initially, chemotherapy is the most primitive treatment, and the drugs doxorubicin, bleomycin, vinblastine, and dacarbazine.

After 12 weeks, the next plan combines the drugs mechlorethamine, doxorubicin, vinblastine, vincristine, bleomycin, etoposide, and prednisone, followed by radiations.

Stem cell transfusion is also a part of treatment. Plus, a chemotherapy session might also be conducted for your spinal cord if cancer metastasizes to your brain.

Researchers at Mount Sinai School of medicine have discovered that stem cell transplants and immunotherapy prove useful in treating stage 4 lymphoma. It restarts the immune response. Moreover, it can treat all kinds of stages, including resisting the common immunosuppressants and chemotherapies.

Important Information About Stage 4 Lymphoma – Lymphoma, as the name, suggests that relates to your lymphatic system. The system comprises a network of lymph nodes and vessels specialized to drain lymphatic fluid

Important Information About Stage 4 Lymphoma

When we were kids, we learned the old song about how the head bone is connected to the neck bone, and the neck bone is connected to the shoulder bone, and so on. As time has marched on, we’ve learned that our bodies are connecting in so many ways that its mind boggling. We touched on that when we discussed 

. But rather than looking at causes of cancer like we did when we talked about bladder cancer, researchers are seeing hope for treating advanced melanoma with fecal transplants! With that, let’s take some time today to look at late-stage melanoma, its standard treatment, and how fecal transplants may help treating this dreaded affliction.

In 2021, there are predicted to be over 106,000 new cases of melanoma diagnosed in the United States, with more than 7,000 expected to succumb to this disease. People of Caucasian heritage are much more likely to be diagnosed with melanoma than are other ethnic groups. In the under 50 age group, women are the most likely to be diagnosed with melanoma, although after age 65, men are twice as likely to be diagnosed with the disease. Sadly, this is a disease that also affects young people, with upwards of 2,500 diagnoses a year in the 15-29 age group.

The staging of melanoma is much like other cancers, with more advanced melanomas having spread further. The illustration below is sourced from the 

Again, like with other cancers, melanoma is cured most easily when caught early – like 99% five-year survival rates when it is localized disease. As the disease progresses, those numbers drop to only about 27% for distant spread of the disease.

Treating late-stage melanoma can be tricky. It likes to travel to distant places like the brain, where surgical removals can be difficult at best, and drugs are not often successful at reaching. (Think Izzy on 

). While the removal of the primary tumor (where it originally began) is often recommended, it should be noted that surgeons will often take a large portion of the skin to ensure what are called “clean margins,” meaning that there are no cancer cells detected at the edges of what was removed. Also, it is common for regional lymph nodes to be removed, as well as other tumors that have developed on a case-by-case basis. I say this is a “case-by-case” issue as sometimes the spread is too great, or the tumors are located in places where removal is not safe. In most cases, surgery is followed by a combination of radiation, chemotherapy, immunotherapy, and targeted therapies. The decision on the proper course often comes down to the exact type of melanoma found by genetic typing.

New Research into Treating Advanced Melanoma

Earlier this month, researchers with the 

 released findings that offer great hope for people with late-stage melanoma. In this work, the scientists looked at how the biology of our intestines affects how melanoma patients respond to immunotherapy. A big part of our immune systems are located in our intestines and is regulated by the types of bacteria found in them. What they found was quite interesting. They found that in patients that had failed treatment with immunotherapy, a fecal transplant from a patient that was successful, had a good chance of increasing the response to treatment. Before you get too grossed out, fecal transplants are performed via colonoscopy, with samples that have been cleared of potential disease-causing germs. Although a lot more research needs to be done on this topic, this initial study provides evidence for larger scale clinical trials.

Speaking of clinical trials, most physicians believe that the key to understanding why certain melanomas respond to treatment, while others do not, lies in clinical trials. We encourage you to take a look at our page dedicated to 

, and to discuss these possibilities with your cancer treatment team if you are so inclined.

As always, much love, many prayers, and abundant blessings to all of the warriors out there!!

Researchers see hope for melanoma treatments while focusing on bacteria in the gut By Kathryn E. Vinson, MS, CCRC When we were kids, we learned

Treating Advanced Melanoma

Looking beyond tobacco usage in the search for lung cancer causes

For a pretty good majority of us, we’ve heard it since we were kids – don’t smoke – it causes lung cancer. It was in 1964 when the first Surgeon General’s report came out showing that smoking tobacco contributes to lung cancer in men, “may” contribute to it in women (which we now know it does) and can play a roll in chronic bronchitis. Since that time, gazillions of dollars have gone into research on smoking and its role in many types of cancer. (Prepare to have your mind blown by reading about 

). But what about those folks that have never smoked a day in their lives and still get lung cancer? Let’s take some time today to talk about what it is about tobacco smoke that causes lung cancer, and what new research is showing for those afflicted that are lifetime non-smokers.

In the most general terms, tobacco smoke – both firsthand and secondhand – are full of nasty chemicals known as carcinogens. With repeated exposure to these chemicals, the lining of the lungs can be come damaged. With an occasional exporsure, it is believed that our bodies can heal themselves; however, repeated exposures to these carcinogens can overwhelm our body’s natural defenses. These repeated insults to the lining of the lungs result in inflammation and possibly damage to the genetic material in the cells. Things such as chronic inflammation and chemical insults to our body tissues are known to cause these cells to grow out of control – in other words – cancer.

Over the last few years, we have talked about the causes of cancer many times, including in “

.” In this article, we discussed the fact that cancer isn’t one disease – it is an umbrella term that encompasses dozens of diseases. In the same sense – lung cancer isn’t just one disease – there are multiple forms.

Small cell lung cancer is a type of lung cancer that is almost always diagnosed in heavy smokers. Non-small cell lung cancer (NSCL) is a term that covers most of the rest of cancer types.

So, the question begs to be asked – what about those people that have never smoked a day in their lives, or even been exposed to secondhand smoke very much – why do they get lung cancer?

There are a couple of things that might answer this question.

Two known causes of lung cancer in non-smokers are being exposed to radon gas and previous radiation treatment in the chest.

The National Safety Council tells us that one in 15 homes in the United States has radon levels that exceed the EPA’s safety levels. Radon gas is something that is naturally produced in certain areas of the country, due to the breakdown of naturally occurring uranium in the soil. It likes to gather in the slabs of our homes and in places like crawl-spaces or basements. Radon is odorless, tasteless, and invisible.

If you live in an area with possible uranium exposure, you might want to consider having your home tested.

I know, I know – you’re thinking – just how the heck am I supposed to know that? There are a few red flags that can give you a hint. The biggie that I know of (because I live in an area live this), is large beds of granite in the earth near you. I live in an area of Texas known as the Llano Uplift – and its basically a huge chunk of granite that has surfaced. Its gorgeous, but it presents more dangers than simply a difficulty in driving fence posts.

If you are concerned about radon exposure, check out the 

’s page dedicated to this concern. There you can find links to do it yourself tests, as well as professionals that can come out and test your home. I’m probably going to order one this week!

Another cause is previous radiation exposure. The most likely cause of this would be from previous cancer treatments in the chest area such as for breast cancer, certain lymphomas, or possibly thymomas.

One more type of chemical exposure bears mentioning -that to nickel, chromium, or arsenic.

New research into non-smoking causes of lung cancer

In December 2020, an interesting study was released showing that the different array of bacteria in the mouth and throat of people could be a 

 predictor of lung cancer in non-smokers. This research matched non-smokers with lung cancer to people without lung cancer by age and sex, as well as other factors. It showed that certain types of bacteria (known as flora) in the oropharyngeal cavity (think mouth and throat) were more or less prevalent in people that developed lung cancer. While this research has many more hurdles to face before any definitive connection can be made, it certainly gives researchers more avenues to study in finding and alleviating the burden of lung cancer in non-smokers.

Lung cancer is not only caused by smiling – great article on things to look out for

Cancer Horizons

What is Lymphoma

Important Information About Stage 4 Lymphoma

Treating Advanced Melanoma

Causes of Lung Cancer

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