You will face many hard decisions if a loved one or you have been diagnosed with lymphoma. Including several questions like where should you go for treatment? What are the available treatment options? How to maintain your quality of life? We have tried to describe these concerns, the types, and possible treatment, which will help you decide.
What Is Lymphoma?
Lymphoma is a type of cancer that develops due to abnormal growth of lymphocytes, a white blood cell type that makes the immune system of the body, which are located in the lymph nodes, spleen, tonsils, bone marrow, and thymus gland-like organs. As the lymphatic system moves lymph throughout the body, these cancer cells usually circulate to all parts of the body, such as the liver, lungs, and bone marrow.
What Are the Types of Lymphoma?
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Hodgkin’s Lymphoma
- Nodular Sclerosis Hodgkin’s Lymphoma - The most common type of Hodgkin’s lymphoma that affects young adults.
- Lymphocyte-Depleted Hodgkin’s Disease - A rare and aggressive type that affects less than 1 % of the population and is commonly diagnosed in immunocompromised patients.
- Lymphocyte-Rich Hodgkin’s Disease - Men are most commonly affected, and about 5 % of lymphoma patients are this type.
- Nodular Lymphocyte-Predominant Hodgkin’s Disease - It is diagnosed in around 5 % of lymphoma patients, usually between 30 and 50 years of age.
- Mixed Cellularity Hodgkin’s Lymphoma. Non-Hodgkin’s Lymphoma (NHL) - It commonly affects older men.
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Non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma (NHL)
- B-Cell Lymphoma - It is a common and aggressive lymphoma that develops from abnormal B-cells in the blood and grows rapidly.
- T-Cell Lymphoma - It is less common than B-cell lymphoma that originates in abnormal T-cells (a type of white blood cells).
- Follicular Lymphoma - White blood cells divide abnormally and result in follicular lymphoma.
- Burkitt’s Lymphoma - This type affects immunocompromised people and is common in children.
- Mantle Cell Lymphoma - Also a rare and aggressive type of lymphoma that usually affects the gastrointestinal tract or bone marrow.
- Lymphoplasmacytic Lymphoma - Also called Waldenstrom macroglobulinemia. It is a rare subtype of lymphoma that majorly affects older adults.
- Small Lymphocytic Lymphoma - A slow-growing B-cell lymphoma.
What Are the Treatment Options for Lymphoma?
Treatment options for lymphoma depend on the type and the severity (how far the cancer cells have spread). MSK's advances in molecular and genetic testing have helped their doctors develop individualized treatments for patients suffering from lymphoma. Certain slow-growing lymphomas might not need to be treated, and only careful monitoring is sufficient. For the other types, chemotherapy, targeted therapies, radiation, stem cell transplantation, immunotherapy, and other therapies are available at MSK.
MSK's lymphoma team provides compassionate and highest possible cancer care. MSK's specialists have vast experience in all types of lymphoma, which is why they treat more than 1,200 lymphoma patients every year.