If you have been diagnosed with non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma, it’s important to obtain certain answers from your healthcare team in order to make informed decisions regarding your treatment plan. Here are some of the questions you may want to discuss during an appointment:
Questions about your diagnosis
- Which type of non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma do I have?
- Has the cancer spread to other areas of my body?
- Did the protein tests determine anything about the type of lymphoma?
- Will I be receiving genetic tests that look for defects in chromosomes?
- Will I receive a copy of my pathology report? (This information includes the results of your lab work and tissue analysis, which is recorded each time tissue is tested.)
Questions about test results
What do the results from my latest standard tests say about my condition? These tests may include:
- Physical exam
- CBC (complete blood count)
- Comprehensive metabolic panel (looks at how well the kidney and liver are working)
- LDH (lactate dehydrogenase; a high LDH level may be a sign of cell damage and that treatment is needed soon)
- Testing for hepatitis B, hepatitis C, and HIV
- A biopsy (takes a tissue sample of a lymph node or other tumor site)
- CT (computed tomography; uses x-rays to create an image of the bones, soft tissues, organs, and blood vessels)
- A PET or PET/CT scan (positron emission tomography; can detect cancer cells)
Questions about further testing
In addition to the initial biopsy and the tests above, your healthcare providers may order one or more of these tests:
- Will I be having a bone marrow exam? (This involves two procedures: a bone marrow aspiration, which removes liquid bone marrow, and a bone marrow biopsy, which removes solid bone marrow tissue.)
- Will I be having a spinal tap? (This procedure is called a lumbar puncture and it determines if the cancer has spread to the fluid around the brain and spinal cord.)
- Will I be having an echocardiogram? (This is a sonogram of the heart. It may be done to test heart function prior to certain types of chemotherapy.)
Questions about fertility
Infertility is a possible consequence of cancer treatment, including treatment for NHL.
- Before starting treatment, should I speak to someone about sperm banking? (This question is for men who may want to have children in the future.)
- Before starting treatment, should I speak to someone about freezing my eggs? (This question is for women who may want to have children in the future.)
Sources: American Cancer Society. Tests for Non-H... + 2
- American Cancer Society. Tests for Non-Hodgkin Lymphoma. Revised February 15, 2024.
- Leukemia & Lymphoma Society. NHL Staging. Accessed October 10, 2024.
- National Cancer Institute. Non-Hodgkin Lymphoma Treatment (PDQ)—Patient Version. Updated August 22, 2024.
