Cancer and its treatment cause physical symptoms and side effects, as well as emotional, social, and financial effects. Managing all of these effects is called palliative care or supportive care.
It is an important part of your care that is included along with treatments intended to slow, stop, or eliminate the cancer. Palliative care focuses on improving how you feel during treatment by managing symptoms and supporting patients and their families with other, non-medical needs.
Any person, regardless of age or type and stage of cancer, may receive this type of care. And it often works best when it is started right after a cancer diagnosis. People who receive palliative care along with treatment for the cancer often have less severe symptoms, better quality of life, and report that they are more satisfied with treatment. Palliative treatments vary widely and often include medication, nutritional changes, relaxation techniques, emotional and spiritual support, and other therapies.
You may also receive palliative treatments similar to those meant to get rid of the cancer, such as chemotherapy, surgery, or radiation therapy. Before treatment begins, talk with your doctor about the goals of each treatment in the treatment plan.
You should also talk about the possible side effects of the specific treatment plan and palliative care options. During treatment, your health care team may ask you to answer questions about your symptoms and side effects and to describe each problem. Be sure to tell the health care team if you are experiencing a problem. This helps the health care team treat any symptoms and side effects as quickly as possible.
It can also help prevent more serious problems in the future. Learn more about the importance of tracking side effects in another part of this guide. Learn more about palliative care in a separate section of this website.
However, progressive disease is uncommon for people with Hodgkin lymphoma. If progression happens, it is a good idea to talk with doctors who have experience in treating it.
Doctors can have different opinions about the best standard treatment plan. Clinical trials might also be an option. Learn more about getting a second opinion before starting treatment, so you are comfortable with your chosen treatment plan. Complete recovery from progressive Hodgkin lymphoma is not always possible. This treatment appears to be more effective for progressive Hodgkin lymphoma than standard chemotherapy.
Palliative care is also important to help relieve symptoms and side effects. For most people, a diagnosis of progressive Hodgkin lymphoma is very stressful and difficult.
You and your family are encouraged to talk about how you feel with doctors, nurses, social workers, or other members of the health care team. It may also be helpful to talk with other patients, including through a support group.
A remission is when lymphoma cannot be detected in the body and there are no symptoms. A remission may be temporary or permanent. This uncertainty causes many people to worry that the cancer will come back. While many remissions are permanent, it is important to talk with your doctor about the possibility of the disease returning.
Understanding your risk of recurrence and the treatment options may help you feel more prepared if the lymphoma does return. Learn more about coping with the fear of recurrence. If the lymphoma returns following remission after the original treatment, it is called recurrent lymphoma. Recurrence is uncommon for people with Hodgkin lymphoma. However, if Hodgkin lymphoma does recur, a new cycle of testing much like that done at the time of diagnosis will begin again to learn as much as possible about the recurrence.
After this testing is done, you and your doctor will talk about the treatment options. Your doctor may suggest clinical trials that are studying new ways to treat this type of recurrent lymphoma. Whichever treatment plan you choose, palliative care will be important for relieving symptoms and side effects. People with recurrent lymphoma often experience emotions such as disbelief or fear. You are encouraged to talk with the health care team about these feelings and ask about support services to help you cope.
Recovery from Hodgkin lymphoma is not always possible. If the lymphoma cannot be cured or controlled, the disease may be called advanced or terminal. This diagnosis is stressful, and for many people, advanced cancer is difficult to discuss. However, it is important to have open and honest conversations with your health care team to express your feelings, preferences, and concerns. The health care team has special skills, experience, and knowledge to support patients and their families and is there to help.
Making sure a person is physically comfortable, free from pain, and emotionally supported is extremely important. It is also important to discuss newer treatment options that are being tested in clinical trials. Finding a second opinion may be useful, too. People who have advanced cancer and who are expected to live less than 6 months may want to consider hospice care. Hospice care is designed to provide the best possible quality of life for people who are near the end of life.
You and your family are encouraged to talk with the health care team about hospice care options, which include hospice care at home, a special hospice center, or other health care locations. Nursing care and special equipment can make staying at home a workable option for many families. Learn more about advanced care planning. Chemotherapy may repeat weekly, bi-weekly, or monthly.
Usually, a cycle is defined in monthly intervals. For example, two bi-weekly chemotherapy sessions may be classified as one cycle. In most cases, the number of cycles - or the length of chemotherapy from start to finish - has been determined by research and clinical trials.
Read more about the side effects of chemotherapy. If regular chemotherapy is unsuccessful or Hodgkin lymphoma returns after treatment, you may have a course of chemotherapy at a higher dose.
However, this intensive chemotherapy destroys your bone marrow, leading to the problems mentioned above. You'll need a stem cell or bone marrow transplant to replace the damaged bone marrow.
Radiotherapy is most often used to treat early-stage Hodgkin lymphoma, where the cancer is only in 1 part of the body. Treatment is normally given in short daily sessions, Monday to Friday, over several weeks.
You shouldn't have to stay in hospital between appointments. Radiotherapy itself is painless, but it can have some significant side effects. These can vary and will be directly related to the part of your body being treated. For example, treatment to your throat can lead to a sore throat, while treatment to the head can lead to hair loss.
Most side effects are temporary, but there's a risk of long-term problems, including infertility and permanently darkened skin in the treatment area. Steroid medication is sometimes used in combination with chemotherapy as a more intensive treatment for advanced cases of Hodgkin lymphoma, or if initial treatment hasn't worked. If you're diagnosed with a rare type of Hodgkin lymphoma called lymphocyte-predominant Hodgkin lymphoma, you may have chemotherapy in combination with a medication called rituximab.
Rituximab is a type of biological therapy called a monoclonal antibody. It attaches itself to the surface of cancerous cells and stimulates the immune system to attack and kill the cell. You may be given additional medication to prevent or reduce side effects.
These depend on the type and dose of drugs given and how long treatment lasts. Common short-term side effects include:. These side effects are usually short-lived and go away over time after treatment ends. If serious side effects occur, chemo may have to be delayed or the doses reduced. Be sure to tell your doctor or nurse if you do have side effects. There are often ways to help with them. For instance, drugs are often used to help prevent nausea and vomiting.
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