Hi, just received my diagnosis of NHL, just waiting for PET scan etc for staging. Feeling wobbly but focused in positive thinking.
Hi Blackberry and a warm welcome to this corner of the Community although I am always sorry to see folks joining us. I am Mike and I help out around our various Lymphoma groups. I was diagnosed back in 1999 with a rare, incurable type of NHL Stage 4a so although my Lymphoma ‘type’ may be different I appreciate the challenges of this journey well.
Do you know the exact type of Non-Hodgkin lymphoma you have been diagnosed with (there are a good number of types)........ this will help get you connected better.
I can understand the wobbly with regards to all this especially when it comes to the Staging. But unlike other cancers like Lung, Liver, Breast, Kidney........ where a Stage 4 diagnosis is seen as a very poor prognosis - in Lymphoma it is completely different.
Lymphoma is not a solid tumour cancer and as it's a blood cancer it reacts differently and is broken down differently. So staging in Lymphomas is used to identify where your Lymphoma is presenting, what would be the best treatment and for how long.
I was stage 4a back in late 2013 and here I am talking with you 9 years on.
Always around to help more, to chat or answer questions as best as I can.
Sorry to hear that you are back on the cancer rollercoaster.
The Treatment of Lymphoma is most likely going to be rather different from what you experienced with your Cervical Cancer. Unlike Solid tumor cancer you can't cut out Lymphoma apart from where this is a danger to life - it has to be completely eradicated as it basically can show up anywhere in the body.
This link Questions to ask your medical team about Lymphoma will help you get your hear round the terms used in blood cancer.
Being a high-grade lymphoma they will most likely want to start treatment soon but the good thing about High Grade is, unlike my type of Low Grade NHL is curable.
It's know that once you have one cancer you are open to other types.
