Blood & lymphatic cancer
12 articles shown
Bone Pain and Fractures in Multiple Myeloma: Protecting Your Spine and Joints in Daily Life
Multiple myeloma weakens the bones and readily causes pain and compression fractures. You can protect your spine and joints by reducing twisting or sudden lifting motions, bending the knees to pick things up, and rolling like a log to get up. Light walking and water exercise are encouraged, but sit-ups, trunk twisting, and jumping should be avoided; bathroom grab bars and night lights help prevent falls. Sudden severe pain, leg weakness, or changes in urination or bowel movements are emergency signs of spinal cord compression and require an immediate call to the hospital.
Hematopoietic Stem Cell Transplant: Following Along Step by Step, From Collection to Engraftment
This walks through the whole flow of a hematopoietic stem cell transplant in four stages—collection, conditioning, infusion, and engraftment. In everyday language it points out that the final transplant itself is as quiet as a blood transfusion, that there are tough hurdles before and after as the marrow is emptied and immunity bottoms out, and that engraftment—new cells settling in and making blood again—usually takes about two weeks.
After the Clean Room: Getting Through the Weeks When Your Immunity Is Low
Coming home from the clean room after a stem cell transplant brings relief and worry together. This piece warmly shares how to get through the stretch when immunity is still low, avoiding infection without shrinking from life, and tending the mind as much as the body.
Transfusions During Chemotherapy: Why They Are Frequent, and What to Watch For
During chemotherapy, the bone marrow's output drops, so red cells or platelets often run low and transfusions become frequent. This guide covers the types of transfusion, what to watch during one, how to respond to reactions such as fever or hives, and practical precautions to keep in mind at home.
CAR-T Cell Therapy: Which Blood Cancer Patients Is It For?
CAR-T cell therapy takes a patient's own immune cells (T cells), reengineers them to recognize cancer, and returns them to the body. It is used for some lymphoma, leukemia, and myeloma patients whose disease has relapsed despite several rounds of treatment, and managing its distinctive side effects, such as cytokine release, is central.
Living Alongside Chronic Myeloid Leukemia, One Pill at a Time
A first-person account of life after a chance diagnosis of chronic myeloid leukemia (CML), found at a routine checkup. The writer reflects on taking a daily targeted-therapy pill, the side effects, the nerves before every molecular test, and the quiet return to an ordinary life.
Multiple Myeloma: The Blood Cancer That Weakens Bone — Symptoms and the Path of Treatment
Multiple myeloma is a blood cancer in which plasma cells in the bone marrow multiply abnormally, weakening bone and causing anemia, kidney strain, and high calcium. Diagnosis combines blood and urine tests, a marrow biopsy, and imaging, and it is treated as a long-term disease using targeted drugs, immunomodulators, and stem cell transplant.
Fever or Bleeding During Chemo: When to Call the Hospital
During chemotherapy for a blood cancer, a fever of 100.4°F (38°C) or higher can signal febrile neutropenia, an emergency that calls for an immediate phone call to the hospital. Bleeding signs such as gum bleeding, a nosebleed that won't stop, or red or black urine and bloody stools, along with sudden shortness of breath, confusion, or a severe headache, all need a fast response. Keep a 24-hour contact number, a planned route to the ER, and a list of your medications ready in advance, and when in doubt, it's safest to simply call your care team and ask.
White Cells, Platelets, Hemoglobin: How to Read Your Blood Test at a Glance
A plain-language guide to three key lines on your blood panel — white blood cells (WBC), platelets (PLT), and hemoglobin (Hb) — covering what each one means, rough normal ranges, and what high or low numbers may signal. The trend across results matters more than any single figure, and the most reliable reading comes from going over it with your own care team.
Blood Cancer Special Copayment Program: From Registration to Lowering What You Actually Pay
After a blood cancer diagnosis, here is how to register for the National Health Insurance special copayment program (sanjeong-teungnye) - and why registration alone is not the whole story. We walk through non-covered costs, the out-of-pocket ceiling, medical expense support, and private insurance, all the ways to bring down what you pay. Don't forget to track your re-registration window.
When Your Mouth Is Sore: Soft Meals You Can Still Swallow
Practical tips for eating with less pain when mouth sores (mucositis) flare up during chemotherapy. The basics: keep food lukewarm or cold, choose smooth textures, and steer clear of spicy, sour, and salty irritants. We suggest finely blended porridge enriched with sweet pumpkin, egg, tofu, soft fish, or yogurt so even small portions deliver protein, plus easy-to-swallow options like a banana shake spread across several small meals a day. It also covers mouth care, such as gentle rinsing after meals and avoiding alcohol-based mouthwash, and the warning signs, like being unable to swallow water or running a fever, that mean you should tell your care team.
Lymphoma Staging and Prognostic Factors: Understanding the Numbers Without the Fear
The stage of a lymphoma is simply a map of how far the disease has spread through the body; it does not directly equal how dangerous things are. Staging runs from I to IV based on the diaphragm, with an A or B added depending on whether B symptoms are present, but the actual treatment plan is set by weighing prognostic factors such as age, LDH, and overall condition (the IPI) at the same time. Even stage IV can reach complete remission, and the meaning shifts dramatically depending on the cell type, so the key is not to be overwhelmed by the number but to talk it through with your own doctor.