Lymphoma is a type of cancer that develops from lymphocytes. Lymphocytes are a type of white blood cells. Lymphocytes are a part of the lymphatic system of our body. The lymphatic system is an important part of our immune system. In lymphoma, the normal lymphocytes undergo mutation and become diseased and they also grow out of proportions.
How Treatable Is Lymphoma Cancer?
Lymphoma cancer is a highly treatable cancer. However, the cure of the disease largely depends on other factors like how early the cancer was diagnosed, what stage it has already progressed to, what is the subtype of the cancer and what is the general health condition of the person.
The treatment for lymphoma is individually tailored. The primary aim of the treatment is to treat the lymphoma successfully, without causing much damage to a person’s overall health and longevity.
The treatment is generally based upon certain factors that are related to lymphoma in general and some other factors that are not directly related to the lymphoma but are related to the affected person. The factors considered are-
- The type and the subtype of the lymphoma
- The stage the disease has been diagnosed at
- The progress of the disease and its spread in the body
- The organs and body parts affected by the lymphoma at the time it was diagnosed
- The presenting symptoms of the affected person, and their severity
Results of certain tests performed related to the lymphoma, which gives a rough estimate of whether the person is going to respond to certain treatments or not.
- The age of the affected person
- The general health of the affected person
- Any other health related issues that the person is suffering from
- Any other medication required considering the prognosis of the disease.
Also, the treatment will be different for different motives-for example, treatments are different for curing and controlling of the cancer.
The Line Of Treatment For Lymphoma
The treatment methodology for a lymphoma is individually tailored. It varies from person to person. Also, as described earlier, it depends on the stage and the grade of the disease as well.
- The treatment for low grade lymphoma is mostly centered on chemotherapy and physiotherapy. The low-grade lymphoma is usually sleeping for years, before it shows any symptoms. And if it does not present with any symptoms, most professionals leave it untouched. This is because; the benefits of treatment do not outweigh the benefits of keeping it untouched. However, this line of treatment may not be suitable for everyone, as this approach is seen to create anxiety and depression in some cases.
- The treatment for high grade lymphoma also consists of aggressive chemotherapy. These cancers spread rapidly, however most of them respond to the treatment quickly too and are highly curable. There is a relapse seen in some cases, within a couple of years of the treatment. However, this risk lowers down thereafter. The survival rate is great in most of the types of high-grade lymphomas.
- Immunotherapy and targeted therapy are some of the options that might be considered according to the individual symptoms.
- If none of the above treatments is successful, then the oncologist may consider stem cell transplant, which also gives promising results.
- Maintenance therapy is also given sometimes, after the initial treatment is over and there is no sign of the disease left. This is advocated, so that it suppresses any possible lymphoma cells, that might have been undetected by the scans. This is started after the main treatment is completed. Immunotherapy is the commonest type of maintenance therapy. However, chemotherapy is also sometimes used.
Lymphoma is a highly treatable cancer. Most of the times, it is completely curable as well. However, this entirely depends on the time of detection and the stage of progress of the disease.
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