8 months of ABVD

Susy28

Hello Everyone,
I was diagnosed in July 2009 with Hodgkin’s 2A with an 11 cm mediastinal mass and will be finishing up ABVD chemo on the 19th of March. I had a PET scan in January and was told that I was cancer free but would need to continue with the treatment. My doctor suggested I complete 6-8 cycles of chemo with no radiation and after 4 cycles he suggested I complete the 8 cycles. Has anyone here had 8 cycles of ABVD? Are there any long term side affects or complications from having 8 cycles as opposed to 6? I am 24 yrs old and as I come to an end with my treatment I have this fear that I will relapse. Starting a family is also another fear. My doctor says there should be no problem but the fear of relapsing or pregnancy complications keeps scaring me.

cargie49

Hi
I had ABVD in 1998 i was
Hi
I had ABVD in 1998 i was 28 , I think i had 8 cycles and then a stem cell transplant, I lead a 99% normal life,I have some slight numbness in my hands and a little in my toes but had this almost immediately at the time. Since then I haven't noticed much else, I had my heart checked last year and it was fine , some aches and pains as i get older, but have got a bit fitter in the last year and these are even getting better.I do have fertility problems BUT that is not always the case for ALL ABVD people I believe and i also had other stuff as well so don't compare yourself to me in that way !!.
As regards relapse.. I do not think about it.. or try not to and most of the time i don't.. just live everyday.. i get check ups annually still and the way i look at it .. I am getting a full check out / MOT and then I know.. whereas most of the rest of the population are walking around everyday not knowing if they are sick or not .. and they don't know..
I too would like to get pregnant and yes I too would worry about introducing something new to my health ststus..
hope this helps a little...
best wishes

Susy28

cargie49 said:

Hi
I had ABVD in 1998 i was
Hi
I had ABVD in 1998 i was 28 , I think i had 8 cycles and then a stem cell transplant, I lead a 99% normal life,I have some slight numbness in my hands and a little in my toes but had this almost immediately at the time. Since then I haven't noticed much else, I had my heart checked last year and it was fine , some aches and pains as i get older, but have got a bit fitter in the last year and these are even getting better.I do have fertility problems BUT that is not always the case for ALL ABVD people I believe and i also had other stuff as well so don't compare yourself to me in that way !!.
As regards relapse.. I do not think about it.. or try not to and most of the time i don't.. just live everyday.. i get check ups annually still and the way i look at it .. I am getting a full check out / MOT and then I know.. whereas most of the rest of the population are walking around everyday not knowing if they are sick or not .. and they don't know..
I too would like to get pregnant and yes I too would worry about introducing something new to my health ststus..
hope this helps a little...
best wishes

Thanks
I'm glad to hear that everything has gone well for you. I had some tingling in my hands and feet during my 2nd and 3rd cycle but it went away. Now I just feel like my fingers are really sensitive and especially to hot objects. I have a feeling this is never going to go away but it's ok it's not that bad. You're absolutely right about getting the full check up. My boyfriend asked me about what was going to happen after treatment and I told him that I would be getting checked for cancer for the rest of my life. I told him that I was lucky because I would be able to catch that sucker right away as opposed to finding out because of symptoms. Thanks for the info, I feel better to hear that you are leading a 99% normal life and I expect that this will be the same for me.
Best Wishes,
Susy