Reoccurance???

pinkwife
pinkwife Member Posts: 1
My hubby who's 38 was dx in June 05 with Hodgkin's Lymphoma (stage 4). He had 6 cycles (12 treatments) of MOPP chemotherapy. He has a mild heart condition and couldn't take ABVD. His PET in March '06 was clear now in the last few days he's started swelling at his neck (not like last time but still swelling all the same). He's also very fatigued (like last time) and I'm scared to death. I don't mean to sound dumb but, is it possible that this cancer (or something worse) has come back so quickly? If I understood the doctor right, it was a 10 year "wait and see" period but, typically it didn't reoccur as the same form and usually not before a 3 year mark. He has a PET on Monday but, I'm just curious if anyone has had this happen before or is familiar with it? Thanks in advance and God Bless.

Comments

  • oneagleswings
    oneagleswings Member Posts: 425 Member
    Hi: I kmow how you feel about being scared..hope that the swelling is nothing serious..how did the scan go? any results yet? Thinking of you.
    Bev
  • darkhorse58
    darkhorse58 Member Posts: 4
    Fatigue is normal after extensive chemo. I had ABVD but I understand fatigue is in common with MOPP. As I sit here right now, after a good night's sleep 6 years post chemo, I am more bone-weary than I ever was in my life before treatment. I also have had colds off and on this cold season, which is due to decreased immune effectiveness. The colds and things will linger longer and make you tired and cause lymph nodes to be big. Lymph nodes constantly get big and then shrink in response to every illness and environmental stimulus.

    Don't be discouraged. Life is different after treatment, but life is good. Fearing a reoccurence is natural, and the experience of cancer itself gives the strength to overcome that fear. There's a movie starring the recent Oscar winner that repeats the Samurai phrase, "The man who knows his fate knows no fear." That should be true for us. We have nothing to fear, because we already have seen some of the worst.