Hodgkins disease survivor

cassmike
cassmike Member Posts: 13
I was diagnosed with stage 11B with hodgkins in 1991. I was given a little over three months of radiation treatment in my neck and mantle. This past year I have severe hearing loss in my left ear, same side i was radiated on. My oncologist thinks it is a result from the treatment. Has anyone else had this problem?
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Comments

  • jrgoy036
    jrgoy036 Member Posts: 2
    I went through radation therapy for Hodgkin's Lymphoma and my hearing has definitely become worse.
  • cassmike
    cassmike Member Posts: 13
    jrgoy036 said:

    I went through radation therapy for Hodgkin's Lymphoma and my hearing has definitely become worse.

    I am sorry to hear that. Did they radiate your neck? Have you had a hearing test? It is hard to adjust to but I it is a small price to pay. Hearing loss, thyroid, and some skin stuff has appeared so far. I hope nothing more. I hope you are doing well.
  • gailygail
    gailygail Member Posts: 3
    I hope you are doing well, cassmike. I am in remission one year as of January 2008. I had hodgkins, mass under my breastbone. I had chemo & rad. I have had no hearing loss. I have developed neuropathy in feet & hands in the past 2 months and still get shooting pains in middle of my chest ever so often. I am alive to tell the story, I can deal with this. thinking of you with hugs, Gailygail
  • bethmad
    bethmad Member Posts: 1
    I had Hodgkins in 1982 and
    I had Hodgkins in 1982 and was treated with radiation for 8 weeks, 5 days a week (I was stage IIA), but at the time they did full mantle radiation. It was the old days and the radiation was pretty generalized. Anyway only recently I've been thinking of getting my hearing checked. Prior to this I haven't had hearing problems, and even now I hear pretty well.
  • sandybe
    sandybe Member Posts: 40
    bethmad said:

    I had Hodgkins in 1982 and
    I had Hodgkins in 1982 and was treated with radiation for 8 weeks, 5 days a week (I was stage IIA), but at the time they did full mantle radiation. It was the old days and the radiation was pretty generalized. Anyway only recently I've been thinking of getting my hearing checked. Prior to this I haven't had hearing problems, and even now I hear pretty well.

    I also had full mantle and neck radiation for Hodgkins. My last treatment was July 4, 2008. I have not noticed any problems with my hearing so far. Did anyone have problems with skin pain? The burns have healed on the outside but it still feels like it is burnt. Any kind of pressure whatsoever on my back feels like I still have a bad burn.
  • april.mcclain
    april.mcclain Member Posts: 2
    sandybe said:

    I also had full mantle and neck radiation for Hodgkins. My last treatment was July 4, 2008. I have not noticed any problems with my hearing so far. Did anyone have problems with skin pain? The burns have healed on the outside but it still feels like it is burnt. Any kind of pressure whatsoever on my back feels like I still have a bad burn.

    I was diagnosed with stage
    I was diagnosed with stage 2B Hodgkin's in December of 2000 at the age of 18. I had a cancerous mass the size of a grapefruit behind my chest wall. I did 6 months of chemotherapy followed by 24 treatments of radiation. I have, thus far, not had any long term effects. My oncologist sees me every 4 months and does blood work at each visit. Additionally he keeps a very close eye on my thyroid. I did have short term effects while I was undergoing radiation treatment... I lost the hair on the back of my head... you could see exactly where the radiation stopped... an intolerable sore throat that only lasted about 5 days, in which I had to take medication to numb my throat in order to even eat soup and drink anything... and I had a weird skin reaction... almost like a burn but not really.. it looked like I had little black dots all over my chest and back. Other than that I didn't have any other noticable problems. Hope you all are doing well. I'm happy to be here! :)
  • tarheis
    tarheis Member Posts: 4
    1991 treatment
    I was treated in 1991 with MOPPABVD for stage 4A. I do have hearing loss didn't know if it was from the chemo or the radiation. The biggest problem I have is a chronic pain in my chest wall. It is there day and night and sometimes worse than others they tell me it is from the amt of radiation received? Anyone experience the same thing? I have tried various pain Dr's and can't get relief?
  • laurlea
    laurlea Member Posts: 1
    Hodgkins Survivor
    I was diagnosed in 1989 with Hodgkins Stage 2B. I had chemo, mantle radiation, bone marrow harvesting. The only side effect I have is neuropathy in my feet. So far so good! Any with a recurrence of leukemia or breast cancer?
  • ldot123
    ldot123 Member Posts: 272
    laurlea said:

    Hodgkins Survivor
    I was diagnosed in 1989 with Hodgkins Stage 2B. I had chemo, mantle radiation, bone marrow harvesting. The only side effect I have is neuropathy in my feet. So far so good! Any with a recurrence of leukemia or breast cancer?

    Colon Cancer
    For anyone having radiation over the abs years ago - get a colonoscopy. I had treatment 1988 and recently had colon cancer. They think the rads may have played a part. Now NED thank goodness. Lance
  • TexasCobra
    TexasCobra Member Posts: 1
    No hearing loss...I think
    I've not lost any hearing, but my thyroid is not functioning as advertised. My doctor thinks it may be caused by the radiation I had for my Hodgkins...12 treatments of ABVD and 5 weeks of radiation. Other problems are scaring of my lung tissue and decreased lung capabilities...also possible caused from the treatments. More later...
  • Peter G
    Peter G Member Posts: 5
    I had full mantle radiation
    I had full mantle radiation in the summer of 2003 to treat Stage I Hodgkins. No problems with hearing to report, but I can definitely say my lungs were pretty fried. I have also had a lot of heartburn problems and my throat gets really easily irritated. I used to love spicy foods, but I can't do them anymore.
  • Peter G
    Peter G Member Posts: 5
    I had full mantle radiation
    I had full mantle radiation in the summer of 2003 to treat Stage I Hodgkins. No problems with hearing to report, but I can definitely say my lungs were pretty fried. I have also had a lot of heartburn problems and my throat gets really easily irritated. I used to love spicy foods, but I can't do them anymore.
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  • ldot123
    ldot123 Member Posts: 272
    Peter G said:

    I had full mantle radiation
    I had full mantle radiation in the summer of 2003 to treat Stage I Hodgkins. No problems with hearing to report, but I can definitely say my lungs were pretty fried. I have also had a lot of heartburn problems and my throat gets really easily irritated. I used to love spicy foods, but I can't do them anymore.

    Tinnitus
    I have tinnitus and a small loss of hearing in my left ear. Getting this looked into and will have an MRI in a couple of months. Not sure if it is from Radiation done 20 years ago but I guess we shall see.
    Lance
  • Fran-HD
    Fran-HD Member Posts: 12
    bethmad said:

    I had Hodgkins in 1982 and
    I had Hodgkins in 1982 and was treated with radiation for 8 weeks, 5 days a week (I was stage IIA), but at the time they did full mantle radiation. It was the old days and the radiation was pretty generalized. Anyway only recently I've been thinking of getting my hearing checked. Prior to this I haven't had hearing problems, and even now I hear pretty well.

    Hodgkins in 1980
    I had hodgkins in 1980 at the age of 17 and a senior in high school. I now feel like I had cancer in the stone age compared with the new treatments available. I have been plagued with several long term effects of radiation. My chest to the top of my neck was radiated. I found out 5 years ago that I had pulmonary fibrosis from radiation leaving me with 75 % lung capacity. I have been able to manage that with asthma based medicines and breathing treatments. Over the past 3 years I have had to deal with acid reflux. Recently it has been worse and the GI doc recommended fundoplication surgery but come to find out they are saying due to radiation that the surgery is really not an option because the tissue is considered unhealthy/damaged due to radiation from 30 years ago. Has anyone else run across long term affects of radiation or know where I can find more information about these long term health issues associated with the radiation. Thanks
  • markwwxiii
    markwwxiii Member Posts: 7
    ldot123 said:

    Tinnitus
    I have tinnitus and a small loss of hearing in my left ear. Getting this looked into and will have an MRI in a couple of months. Not sure if it is from Radiation done 20 years ago but I guess we shall see.
    Lance

    stage 4
    I was diagnosed with stage 4 Hodgkin's when I was 11, I am now 23. I'm glad to be here with people that went threw the same thing (or close to it) that I did.
  • dpomroy
    dpomroy Member Posts: 135
    Yes, to all of the
    Yes, to all of the above:
    thyroid problems due to radiation of the neck
    lung damage due to high dose chemo and radiation
    early menopause because of treatments
    neuropathy, yes
    panic attacks, yes
    dry skin
    hearing loss
    protein spilling disease of the kidneys
    who knows what else

    But
    I
    am still
    ALIVE!
    and kicking!
  • hodgkoid2003
    hodgkoid2003 Member Posts: 94
    ldot123 said:

    Tinnitus
    I have tinnitus and a small loss of hearing in my left ear. Getting this looked into and will have an MRI in a couple of months. Not sure if it is from Radiation done 20 years ago but I guess we shall see.
    Lance

    Tinnitus
    Lance,

    One of the things that I recently went over with during my visit to my "late effects" specialist, was the fact that I haven't had my eyes or ears checked in who knows how long. And these were things that they definitely told me were important to do, as they could be affected by radiation.

    Paul E. (Hodgkoid2003)
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