Treatment Options for Adult Hodgkin Lymphoma

Early Favorable Hodgkin Lymphoma
Early Unfavorable Hodgkin Lymphoma
Advanced Favorable Hodgkin Lymphoma
Advanced Unfavorable Hodgkin Lymphoma
Recurrent Adult Hodgkin Lymphoma
Hodgkin Lymphoma During Pregnancy
        Hodgkin Lymphoma During the First Trimester of Pregnancy
        Hodgkin Lymphoma During the Second Half of Pregnancy

A link to a list of current clinical trials is included for each treatment section. For some types or stages of cancer, there may not be any trials listed. Check with your doctor for clinical trials that are not listed here but may be right for you.

Treatment of early favorable Hodgkin lymphoma may include the following:

• Combination chemotherapy.
• Combination chemotherapy with radiation therapy to parts of the body with cancer.
• Radiation therapy alone to areas of the body with cancer or to the mantle field (neck, chest, armpits).

Check for U.S. clinical trials from NCI's list of cancer clinical trials that are now accepting patients with stage I adult Hodgkin lymphoma and stage II adult Hodgkin lymphoma. For more specific results, refine the search by using other search features, such as the location of the trial, the type of treatment, or the name of the drug. General information about clinical trials is available from the NCI Web site.

Treatment of early unfavorable Hodgkin lymphoma may include the following:

• Combination chemotherapy.
• Combination chemotherapy with radiation therapy to parts of the body with cancer.

Check for U.S. clinical trials from NCI's list of cancer clinical trials that are now accepting patients with stage I adult Hodgkin lymphoma and stage II adult Hodgkin lymphoma. For more specific results, refine the search by using other search features, such as the location of the trial, the type of treatment, or the name of the drug. General information about clinical trials is available from the NCI Web site.

Treatment of advanced favorable Hodgkin lymphoma may include the following:

• Combination chemotherapy.
• Combination chemotherapy with radiation therapy to parts of the body with cancer.

Check for U.S. clinical trials from NCI's list of cancer clinical trials that are now accepting patients with stage III adult Hodgkin lymphoma and stage IV adult Hodgkin lymphoma. For more specific results, refine the search by using other search features, such as the location of the trial, the type of treatment, or the name of the drug. General information about clinical trials is available from the NCI Web site.

Treatment of advanced unfavorable Hodgkin lymphoma may include the following:

• Combination chemotherapy.
• Clinical trials of new combinations of chemotherapy.
• A clinical trial of high-dose chemotherapy and stem cell transplant using the patient's own stem cells.

Check for U.S. clinical trials from NCI's list of cancer clinical trials that are now accepting patients with stage III adult Hodgkin lymphoma and stage IV adult Hodgkin lymphoma. For more specific results, refine the search by using other search features, such as the location of the trial, the type of treatment, or the name of the drug. General information about clinical trials is available from the NCI Web site.

Treatment of recurrent Hodgkin lymphoma may include the following:

• Combination chemotherapy.
• Combination chemotherapy followed by high-dose chemotherapy and stem cell transplant with or without radiation therapy.
• Radiation therapy with or without chemotherapy.
• Chemotherapy as palliative therapy to relieve symptoms and improve quality of life.
• A clinical trial of high-dose chemotherapy and stem cell transplant.
• A clinical trial of lower-dose chemotherapy and radiation therapy followed by stem cell transplant.

Check for U.S. clinical trials from NCI's list of cancer clinical trials that are now accepting patients with recurrent adult Hodgkin lymphoma. For more specific results, refine the search by using other search features, such as the location of the trial, the type of treatment, or the name of the drug. General information about clinical trials is available from the NCI Web site.

When Hodgkin lymphoma is diagnosed in the first trimester of pregnancy, it does not necessarily mean that the woman will be advised to end the pregnancy. Each woman's treatment will depend on the stage of the lymphoma, how fast it is growing, and her wishes. For women who choose to continue the pregnancy, treatment of Hodgkin lymphoma during the first trimester of pregnancy may include the following:

• Watchful waiting when the cancer is above the diaphragm and is slow-growing. Delivery may be induced when the fetus is 32 to 36 weeks old so the mother can begin treatment.
• Radiation therapy above the diaphragm. (A lead shield is used to protect the fetus from the radiation as much as possible.)
• Systemic chemotherapy using one or more drugs.

When Hodgkin lymphoma is diagnosed in the second half of pregnancy, most women can delay treatment until after the baby is born. Treatment of Hodgkin lymphoma during the second half of pregnancy may include the following:

• Watchful waiting, with plans to induce delivery when the fetus is 32 to 36 weeks old.
• Systemic chemotherapy using one or more drugs.
• Steroid therapy.
• Radiation therapy to relieve breathing problems caused by a large tumor in the chest.