To mark World Lymphoma Awareness Day yesterday, a sports event was staged in Taipei where 100 cancer patients took part in fun activities to show their determination to fight against the illness.
Hope Foundation for Cancer Care, co-host of the event, said lymphoma is regarded as a “silent killer,” due to the uncertainty which surrounds the cause of the disease which affects a wide of patients from different ages and with no obvious early stage symptoms. This often means medical treatment is delayed because it is mistaken as being a cold, it added.
Hsieh Cheng-i (謝政毅), a doctor at Taipei Medical University Hospital’s Division of Hematology & Oncology, said six key symptoms can help alert people to lymphoma, including having a fever for an unknown reason, the enlargement of the lymph nodes, itching across the entire body, night sweats, coughing and a sudden drop in body weight.
In addition to receiving medical treatment once the six key symptoms have been identified, foundation secretary-general Elaine Su (蘇連瓔) said that patients diagnosed with the illness should trust their doctors and follow their advice throughout the entire duration of their treatment.
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