Hi there. I've recently been diagnosed with Hodgkins Lymphoma Stage 1A and have consented to take part in a clinical trial for my chemo which starts next week. I have been asked to make a decision on whether I would like to have radiotherapy at the end of my chemo and the clinical trial that I'm taking part in requires me to decide on this beforehand (technically I am able to change my mind but I would then have to withdraw from the clinical trial which isn't ideal).

The oncologist and radiotherapist have given some information on the pros and cons of radiotherapy, one of the benefits of radiotherapy being that although stage 1, my diagnosis is borderline "bulky Hodgkins lymphoma" due to the size of my enlarged lymph nodes (which are cervical by the way), therefore radiotherapy may have some role in achieving a higher chance of full remission. The disadvantages of radiotherapy would include possibly thyroid and salivary gland related issues due to the location of the enlarged nodes. Another important thing is that although if I don't have radiotherapy there is a slightly higher chance of the cancer coming back, a benefit of being on the clinical trial would be that I would have regular follow ups for 5 years following completion of treatment, so hopefully if the lymphoma came back then it would be caught early and there are still options to then treat it.

I am in two minds regarding this decision and would appreciate if anyone had some advice on what they would do if they were in my shoes. Thank you in advance.