Sheri Prentiss, MD, MPH, CPS/A, CPE, FACPE is both a clinician and a cancer survivor. She was diagnosed with breast cancer and has been living with one of the most difficult repercussions from her treatment – lymphedema. Dr. Prentiss poignantly describes her ongoing battle with this late effect.
The data indicates that there is, indeed, an increased risk for pulmonary issues, including pneumonia, for young adult survivors. The article does not specify what causes this outcome, but we do know that radiation to the chest area can be a major culprit. If you have been treated for cancer, especially with radiation, you may want to be followed by a pulmonologist in addition to your other providers. Many Hodgkin’s survivors have regular “pulmonary function tests,” or PFT’s, to help monitor our lung health.
Key considerations that both clinicians and survivors face when using cannabis to relieve pain and other symptoms.
Key considerations that both clinicians and survivors face when using cannabis to relieve pain and other symptoms.
A new article from Medscape examines how many cancer survivors face health challenges similar to “accelerated aging” – including early heart disease, frailty, and other conditions. If you’re a survivor, consider sharing this article with your primary care doctor. It’s a powerful way to help them understand what survivorship really means.
Hodgkin’s International recognizes that choosing to have a vaccine or forgoing one is ultimately a personal decision. In this article, Blood Cancer United (formerly Leukemia and Lymphoma Society) lists all of the vaccines that are recommended for survivors, and those that are NOT recommended.
Survivorship follow-up care is currently a much debated topic. Questions such as, “Who is in charge of my care now that treatment is completed?” are commonly asked by survivors, and the answers are varied and often confusing. This article addresses many of those questions. It includes comments from Dr. Kevin Oeffinger, who has worked tirelessly to create quality care for survivors.
Childhood cancer survivors face accelerated aging, with studies showing they develop serious health conditions nearly 18 years earlier than the general population. Even without radiation therapy, survivors remain at higher risk for secondary cancers and cardiovascular disease, underscoring the lasting impact of chemotherapy and other treatments. While survival rates have improved and new guidelines, care tools, and therapies are helping, long-term risks persist, making lifelong follow-up and protective strategies essential.
Hodgkin International’s Rachel Gingold reflects on 36 years of survivorship.
Protect yourself from COVID-19 and flu this fall and winter. Everything you need to know about new flu shots and the updated 2025-26 COVID-19 vaccine.