Hi LB, 

I'm sorry to hear that you've been diagnosed with hodkins lymphoma. Undoubtedly it will have felt like a shock. 

We've some information on our website about ABVD which may be of help to you. I've also had a look through the forum for any members who have experience with this type of treatment and can see that [@Teacher-Shell]‍ recently posted about her experience. [@Rufus29]‍ also has had ABVD. Hopefully as I've tagged them into this post they'll pop along to say Hello! soon. 

If you'd like to talk to any of our team of nurses about your concerns then do give them a call. They're available Monday to Friday 9am to 5pm on 0808 800 4040. 

I hope that you don't have to wait too long for your PET scan and that you get good news. Let us know how you get on. 

Best wishes, 
Jenn
Cancer Chat moderator

Hi LB, 

I am so sorry to hear your news. I was diagnosed with Hodkins Lymphoma in April 2019, stage two, at the age of 33 with two young children and it was a huge shock to me too. 

My symptoms were itchy skin, lump in my neck and my chest felt tight but i never thought i would be diagnosed with cancer! 

I was having ABVD chemotherapy every two weeks for two months but luckily my last scan showed the tumours are reducing and therefore i now only have AVD. I had my 5th session yesterday but my first on just AVD and so far so good. I have got treatment for 6 months so in two weeks I am half way!

Whilst having ABVD my symptoms followed generally the same pattern. Would feel a bit nauseous for three days, had very low energy, slept alot and felt dizzy....like a hangover. I would also occasionally taste a metal taste in my mouth too. This would then pass and i would get really bad arm ache from the chemotherapy injections and then after a week i would have a good week before chemotherapy again. I would describe the whole process as 'do-able' but it isnt easy. You definitely can have a life but you do as much as possible in your better week however you definitely can't work at the pace you may normally. I get tired quickly etc. I started to loose my haor in clumps after session 3 of chemotherapy and decided then to shave the rest off and to be honest i am fine with it. A head scalf looks way better than i thought and the wigs, although hot, are amazing too. So try not to worry abiut your hair....i did and as soon as it was gone i was fine! 

I hope you cope well with treatment and if there is anything else you want to ask me feel free as i know how hard it is when nobody else quite knows what your going through. 

All the best

Shell

Hi Shell

May I ask about your itching symptom. My story is similar to yours and all the docs seem stumped about my itching. I just feel I've been fobbed off with antihistamines and moisturisers. I itch everywhere and have been for 14 months now. From my scalp to the soles of my feet. But it's not just a normal itch that you feel on the surface and scratch it and it goes away. It feels deeper under the surface and scratching it is just temporary relief. I'd love to hear from someone that's experienced the same as me.

Tia

Deb

Good morning Deb, 

The itching you describe sounds exactly the same as mine did but I also had the feeling of someone sat on my chest and a golf-ball sized lump near my collar bone. Do you have any other symptoms? Have you had any tests for Lymphoma? 

Once I was diagnosed and began chemotherapy the itching stopped straight away. 

I hope you can get some answers and treatment quickly. 

Shell

Shelley

Hi Shell

I was diagnosed with Hodgkins last month and had my first chemo on Friday. The itching doesn't seem as bad so I'm hopeful. 

Thankyou for your reply

Deb

This is postive then Deb. I really hope after your next Chemo session the itching has fully gone for you.

Good luck with your treatment and please feel free to contact me again if you want to talk or have any questions or concerns. I am no expert but I know talking or asking someone who has been through it does help. 

All the best. Keep fighting.  You are doing fantastic!

Shell

Hi there,  

Maybe you can help me.  My FIL had a terrible itch for about 18 months.  Wouldn't see a gp. He then had a stroke and they found cancer in his stomach.  I read the itch can be anemia or cancer in the lymph nodes.  At this time he had anemia so I put it down to that.  

He eventually got a gastrectomy and the itch disappeared.  They also took out 20 nodes half of which had cancer.  His surgeon said the cancer will probably return.  He has never been fit enough for chemotherapy and won't ever be.  3 months post of and the itch has returned.  He has no anemia so do you think the lymph nodes and doing this?  I have no idea how fast cancer can develop in nodes. I think there are more than 20 round the stomach so maybe still some cancer in there? 

Thanks for any ideas, gigi x