Treatment

Hello. My 20 year old daughter was diagnosed with Hodgkins just befoe Christmas (great Christmas present) and she had 10 chemo tretments and all seems to be great, she has lost her hair but that we know will grow back, therefore that is not what is worring us, now as a precaution they want her to have 4 rounds of radiation. She was a stage 2A, 2 upper lymph nodes but what has me worried is that will the radiation cause side effects such as thyroid problems, breathing or swolling problems, etc.... very curious can someone please give me a little information.
Thank you so much for any help you can give me.
Mally

Hi my son is 9 years old and is a 2a also he went thru chemo and radiation he finished radiation in october 2004 and has had no problems with it he even went to school during treatment.

Samantha & Brandon

Dear Samatha & Brandon:
Thanks you so much for ur response.... All the information we receive is great news and I am so happy to hear that everything is going well for your son.
God bless and take care
Regards, Mary & Vanessa

Hello. I'm 22 and also have Hodgkins Disease. I will have completed my 4 cycles of ABVD in 2 days. The original plan was then to follow up with 3 weeks of radiation. Because I would like to avoid the long term side effects of radaition we are considering 2 more cycles of chemo instead, because I have handled it so well. I will keep you updated, let me know also of any new info, and on your decision. (I'm also stage 2a)

God bless and hope all is well
Erin

So glad to hear that you will complete your 4 cycles of ABVD in a few days. I would like to know what the specialists told you the 3 weeks of radiation could cause as long term side effects. We have opted for the radiation as it will only be 12 treatments, therefore 2 weeks and 2 days, and we spoke to a radialogist-oncologist who told us that the dosage my daughter will be receiving is not aggressive, on the contratry it is the lowest radiation a person can receive and also he told us that the side effects were very minute due the low dosage. He told us that some people could develop heart problems, breathing problems, etc... but as he told us mostly people over the age of 50 where the one who began developing these side effects and he considers the side effects mostly due to bad health, such as stress, smoking, and overall health problems, he also mentioned that he has not seen any side effects appear on otherwise healthy young patients, therefore the reason we opted for the radiation. My daughter only had 10 treatments of ABVD instread of the full 4 cycles due to the fact that she responded so well to the chemo and she had very little side effects except for the hair loss and a little fatique. We are scheduled to begin radiation in August and will let you know how all turns out. Our oncologist also told us he attended a seminar in Florida a few months ago and that now the treatment that they recommend for Lymphoma is the ABVD and a few treatments of radiation... Not an easy decision to make but we really trust our oncologist who is a God send.
God bless and take care
Mary & Vanessa

I was just 26 when I was diagnosed with stage 2A Hodgkins. I took ABVD chemo for 6 months and had 4 weeks of radiation. My tumour was in my chest with another up near my left collar bone and one above my right collar bone. I am now 29 years old and have been in clinical remission for over 2 years since the end of my treatment. I have not had any side effects (long term) from the radiation as of yet except I was diagnosed with l'hermitte's syndrome shortly after. It just means I got tingles down my spine when I looked down after using my legs quite a bit. It was apparently caused by the radiation inflaming my cervical spine. They told me it would eventually go away and it did. Other than that I have been ok. My blood work always includes a TSH to check my thyroid function and so far over two years later, everything is great!!!

I would love to hear from you to see how your daughter is doing.

Take care,
Joanne

Our 28 year old daughter 3 years ago was diagnosed with HL, stage 4. She went through the usual 6 months of therapy, and though radiation was discussed, her doctor was of the opinion that unless it is specifically indicated that it probably should not be done. She did not have radiation, and today remains free of reoccurance.

I have done much study on this subject, and am of the opinion (supported by a great deal of research) that the value of radiation following chemo is very small, especially when compared to the increased risk of other cancers and problems caused by radiation.

Take charge, do your own research, present it to your medical team, and make an informed decision with them.

Blessings . . .

Dave