Lymphoma symptoms

Symptoms

In most cases (70%) of Hodgkin’s lymphoma, a rubber-like, palpable enlargement of a lymph node occurs first, which is usually located on the neck. The swelling of the neck is painless. Lymph nodes above the collarbone, in the armpit or in the groin are rather rare.

In one third of patients, the first symptom of lymphoma is a swelling of the lymph nodes behind the breastbone. As a rule, this cannot be palpated, but is conspicuous by a chronic irritable cough that is triggered by it. In addition, breathing can be impeded and a feeling of pressure can be triggered.

In addition, individual lymph nodes distributed throughout the body can be affected and swell up, which can lead to pain, feelings of pressure and diarrhea. Rarely, however, Hodgkin’s lymphoma is characterized by a painful feeling of pressure in the affected lymph nodes after alcohol consumption. Some patients also complain of fatigue, performance slumps, itching all over the body and the so-called B-symptoms.

These include night sweats, weight loss of more than 10% of the total weight in the last six months and fever above 38 degrees Celsius. In addition, patients often complain of increased infections, such as colds, flu-like infections, skin rashes, fungal infections, etc. This results in a weakening of the immune system due to this disease.

If the skeletal system is already affected, bone pain can occur, and if the liver is also affected, painful swelling usually occurs. Non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma is also characterized by swelling of the lymph nodes caused by degenerated lymphocytes, as well as fatigue and performance problems. In contrast to Hodgkin’s lymphoma, the so-called B-symptom occurs relatively rarely (only 20%).

In contrast, the bone system is affected more frequently than in Hodgkin’s lymphoma. Furthermore, non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma can also involve the skin, and the liver and spleen are affected much more frequently than in Hodgkin’s lymphoma. 1/4 of the patients with chronic lymphocytic leukemia tend to have no symptoms at the beginning of the disease.

The most common symptom is painless swelling of the lymph nodes in the neck, armpit (swelling of lymph nodes in the armpit) and in the groin region and collarbone. There may also be lymph nodes that are individually distributed throughout the body, which can lead to corresponding symptoms. In 15% of cases, the liver is involved, in 50% the spleen.

Patients usually complain of night sweats, fever and weight loss only after the disease has progressed. They may also be more susceptible to infections due to a weakened immune system. You can find more information about this here: Symptoms of lymph gland cancer