Dan's Non-Hodgkin's Lymphoma Story

There are a lot of places on the Internet to get more factual, more research based information regarding non-Hodgkin's Lymphoma (see links to the left). But there is no place to get my story except these pages. Joining a growing number of such sites, I will share what happened and what was relevant to me during diagnosis, treatment, and my current remission. Hopefully the sharing of such information will enable those who deal with the disease to become more informed and offer an alternative to the limited knowledge that the medical community can provide from their clinical perspective.

In June of 1999, as an active male, age 30, I'd been somewhat fatigued, had a loss of appetite, and had experienced a curious lightheadedness when standing up too quickly. After numerous blood tests and bone marrow aspirations (ouch!), I was diagnosed with Lymphoplasmacytic Non-Hodgkin's Lymphoma. Since my hemoglobin was dangerously low (at 5.8 it was roughly one third a normal count), I began chemo- and immuno- therapy soon thereafter, on July 12. During the next six months I received 9 intravenous rounds of Cytoxan, Vincristine, and Prednisone (CVP) along with the relatively new drug Rituxan, in three week cycles. I also received a number of blood transfusions, and injections of Procrit and Neupogen. In January of 2000 my oncologist pronounced me in a "good partial remission." A year later I'm feeling very good, working out daily, and hoping my remission lasts as long as possible. (Insert your prayers / good wishes / positive vibes here!)

I plan to add more to the site soon, but for now all I can provide are the basic facts above and copies of the blood count charts I've been tracking since diagnosis (below). Please visit the links to the left for more information on the disease and related topics, including chemotherapy, immunotherapy, blood counts, and more.

(Months on the horizontal axis below begin in June 1999. Gray areas on the charts indicate normal ranges as defined from the online sources listed under links.)