Symptoms and Diagnosis of Lymphoma
Before lymphoma can be diagnosed the patient has to experience at least one of the common symptoms to the degree that it prompts them to visit their family doctor. There are a number of common symptoms associated with lymphoma including the following:
- Painless swellings in the lymph glands, especially in the neck, groin and armpit areas. More often than not these swellings are attributed to infection when they are the only symptom felt and it is only when further symptoms are experienced that the sufferer visits the doctor.
- Fever and night sweats.
- Unexplained weight loss.
- A general feeling of being unwell that might include nausea and even vomiting.
- Itchy inflamed skin that has no other possible cause.
There are a number of tests that are commonly carried out to firmly diagnose lymphoma however a physical examination will be performed before any specialised tests are suggested. The physical examination will include the doctor feeling for swelling of the lymph glands in addition to the spleen and liver. There will also be an in-depth look at the sufferer's medical history so that any other potential symptoms can be revealed. At the same time blood will be taken and tested for cancer markers and any signs of infection that may be causing the symptoms. Cancerous cells release chemical markers and these can be detected from an early stage in the blood. These tests can also show how developed the lymphoma is, what secondary organs it has spread to, if indeed it has spread, and what subtype it is so that a suitable treatment can be worked out.
Once a definite diagnosis of lymphoma has been made then imaging tests can be used to get a better picture of how developed the disease is and where in the body it is affecting. A dye material can be injected into the body that makes the lymph glands show up brightly on an x-ray and this can help cancer specialists to see how much swelling has occurred and so how big the tumours have already grown. Following this, a CT scan and MRI scan can then show where the tumours have spread to and how developed they are in each of the body systems. This can then be used to determine the cancer's stage and how likely a cure is.
Occasionally a biopsy will also be needed to make a definite diagnosis and this involves a small operation in which a tiny section of a lymphoma tumour is extracted and closely looked at under a microscope. Lymphoma cells have a characteristic shape and size and so are easily recognised by a specialist.
Once a diagnosis has been made and the specialist knows how developed the disease is and how far it has managed to spread around the body, then a course of treatment can be constructed. People with early lymphoma will often respond better to their treatment than those with late stage lymphoma and so it is imperative that an early diagnosis is made.
Any of the lymphoma signs and symptoms mentioned above should be checked by a doctor as soon as possible so that the best possible chance of survival and cure is made available to the patient.