Diagnosis, Etiology, Staging, Prognosis, and Treatment
| 5-year relative survival by stage at diagnosis | ||
|---|---|---|
| Stage at diagnosis | 5-year relative survival (%) |
Percentage of cases (%) |
| Localized (confined to primary site) | 82.1 | 28 |
| Regional (spread to regional lymphnodes) | 77.5 | 19 |
| Distant (cancer has metastasized) | 59.9 | 45 |
| Unknown (unstaged) | 67.5 | 8 |
These depend on the specific form of lymphoma. For some forms of lymphoma, watchful waiting is often the initial course of action. If a low-grade lymphoma is becoming symptomatic, radiotherapy or chemotherapy are the treatments of choice; although they do not cure the lymphoma, they can alleviate the symptoms, particularly painful lymphadenopathy. Patients with these types of lymphoma can live near-normal lifespans, but the disease is incurable. Treatment of some other, more aggressive, forms of lymphoma can result in a cure in the majority of cases, but the prognosis for patients with a poor response to therapy is worse. Treatment for these types of lymphoma typically consists of aggressive chemotherapy, including the CHOP or RCHOP regimen. Hodgkin lymphoma typically is treated with radiotherapy alone, as long as it is localized. Advanced Hodgkin disease requires systemic chemotherapy, sometimes combined with radiotherapy. See the articles on the corresponding form of lymphoma for further information.
Read more about this topic: Lymphoma
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