Lymphoma disease is the cancer of your lymphatic system. This develops in lymphocytes(Infection fighting cells) which are a type of white blood cell. These cells help in the fight against any disease in the body and they play an essential role in your immune defenses.
As this type of cancer disease is present in the lymphatic system it can fast metastasize, or spread to different tissues & the organs throughout human body. Lymphoma most commonly spreads to the liver lungs and the bone marrow.
As per the data available, People of any age may develop lymphoma but it is most common cancer in children and young adults aging between 15–24 years. It is often treatable and curable.
In this, we look at types of the lymphoma, treatment, diagnosis and about best lymphoma treatment hospitals and doctors in India with the information on best lymphoma treatment cost in India.
Types of Lymphoma;
There mainly2 types of lymphoma,
- Non-Hodgkin Lymphoma;
Non-Hodgkin lymphoma is the most common type of lymphoma, this typically develops from B & T lymphocytes (While blood cells) in the lymph nodes or in the tissues throughout your body. The growth of tumor in non-Hodgkin lymphoma might not affect every lymph node of a person, often skip some and continue to grow on others.
Please note that this accounts for 95% of lymphoma cases.
- Hodgkin Lymphoma:
The Hodgkin lymphoma is a type of cancer of your immune system and specialists can identify it by presence of the Reed-Sternberg cells which abnormally are large B lymphocytes. In patients with Hodgkin lymphoma, the cancer disease normally moves from one lymph node to the other adjacent one.
Treatment Of Lymphoma Disease:
- Biologic therapy
- Antibody therapy
- Chemotherapy
- Radio immunotherapy
- Radiation therapy
- Stem cell transplantation
- Steroids
- Surgery
Risk factors:
Various risk factors may increase the risk of both types of lymphoma disease.
Risk Factors for Non-Hodgkin Lymphoma;
Age: Most of the lymphomas occur in people 60 or above, However, some of them are more likely to develop in kids & young adults.
Sex: Some are common in men and some in women.
Chemicals & Radiation
Ethnicity & Location: The Non-Hodgkin Lymphoma is common in the developed countries.
Immune Deficiency: An individual with a weak immune system has a high risk.
Infection: Some viral & bacterial infections that transform lymphocytes like EBV may increase the risk.
Autoimmune Diseases
Breast Implants: These sometimes can lead to large cell lymphoma in breast tissues.
Body Weight & The Diet: As per ACS (American Cancer Society) overweight and obesity may be at times associated with development of lymphoma.
Risk factors for Hodgkin lymphoma may include below;
- Infectious Mononucleosis
- Sex: Hodgkin lymphoma is found little more common in men than in women.
- Age: Individuals in the age range of 20–30 years and the ones above 55 years of age have high risk of lymphoma.
- Family History
- HIV Infection: This may weaken the system and increase the risk.
Diagnosis;
Investigations required to find out lymphoma
Blood tests and biopsies
A biopsy involves a Specialists taking away a small sample of lymph tissue to diagnose.
Imaging tests: A Specialists may prescribe imaging scans, such as:
- CT Scan
- MRI Scan
- PET CT Scan
- X-ray of the chest, abdomen and the pelvis region.
A spinal tap: Sometime a spinal tap is required for diagnosis of the lymphoma in a patient’s body.
