Treatments for Hodgkin lymphoma

Your healthcare team will create a treatment plan just for you. The plan is based on your health and specific information about the cancer. What you want is also important when planning treatment. When deciding which treatments to offer for Hodgkin lymphoma (HL), your healthcare team will consider:

  • the stage
  • if you have B symptoms (fever, drenching night sweats and unexplained weight loss)
  • if you have any unfavourable prognostic factors, such as bulky disease
  • your age
  • your overall health
  • your risk for short-term or late side effects from treatment
  • your lifestyle and what you want or prefer, including if you think you might want to have children in the future

Chemotherapy or chemoimmunotherapy, with or without radiation therapy, is the main treatment for HL.

Stem cell transplant may be offered for HL that doesn’t respond (is refractory) to treatment or that comes back (recurs or relapses) after treatment.

Surgery is rarely used to treat HL. It may be used to do a biopsy to help diagnose and stage the disease.

Nodular lymphocyte-predominant HL (NLPHL) is treated differently from HL. Find out more about treatment for NHPHL.

Treatments for early-stage Hodgkin lymphoma

Early-stage Hodgkin lymphoma (HL) is treated with chemotherapy and radiation therapy.

Treatments for advanced Hodgkin lymphoma

Advanced Hodgkin lymphoma (HL) is treated with chemoimmunotherapy, sometimes followed by radiation therapy.

Treatments for relapsed or refractory Hodgkin lymphoma

Treatments for relapsed (recurrent) or refractory Hodgkin lymphoma (HL) include chemotherapy, radiation therapy, stem cell transplant, targeted therapy and chemoimmunotherapy.

Treatments for nodular lymphocyte-predominant Hodgkin lymphoma

Nodular lymphocyte-predominant Hodgkin lymphoma (NLPHL) is treated with radiation therapy, chemotherapy and targeted therapy.

Chemotherapy for Hodgkin lymphoma

Chemotherapy uses drugs to destroy cancer cells. Chemotherapy followed by radiation treatment is the main treatment for Hodgkin lymphoma (HL).

Chemoimmunotherapy for Hodgkin lymphoma

Advanced Hodgkin lymphoma (HL) may be treated with chemoimmunotherapy, which combines chemotherapy and immunotherapy drugs.

Radiation therapy for Hodgkin lymphoma

Radiation therapy uses high-energy rays or particles to destroy cancer cells. It is given after chemotherapy to treat Hodgkin lymphoma (HL).

Stem cell transplant for Hodgkin lymphoma

Stem cell transplant is sometimes offered to treat relapsed or refractory Hodgkin lymphoma (HL). It may be an option for people who are healthy enough to have this treatment.

Follow-up after treatment for Hodgkin lymphoma

Follow-up is an important part of care for Hodgkin lymphoma (HL). It often involves regular tests and visits with the healthcare team.

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