‘I treated a recurring cough as if it were allergies and reflux, but it was cancer at the age of 27’ | Health

Ezabely Lopes, 27, decided to bring her story to TikTok in order to warn others about persistent symptoms that could be signs of cancer and are at least worth investigating. The model and nursing student treated a continuous cough as if it were an allergy and, later, reflux. But in fact, she had Hodgkin’s lymphoma.

“It all started in June 2023, in winter. I started to have a cough that was interpreted as allergic. I had a consultation with the UBS doctor and she gave me azithromycin, but it didn’t improve”, recalls the resident of Viçosa, Minas Gerais.

The second explanation they tried to give to Lopes’ cough was due to reflux. This is because the model felt her cough getting worse after eating. “I started treating it with domperidone and, even then, it didn’t go away,” she says. She also underwent tests for tuberculosis, but they came back negative.

“I continued to treat it as an allergic cough and reflux for six months”, he recalls. The scenario only changed when she identified a lump in her neck that became evident after the model lost five kilos from one month to the next.

In addition to sudden weight loss, which is a symptom associated with cancer, she showed other signs of the disease, but these went unnoticed at the time. “Like a huge itch on my leg and a lot of night sweats,” she explains.

Lopes underwent an ultrasound and, upon examination, it was found that she had three pathological nodules. The model subsequently underwent a CT scan, which revealed an 18-centimeter tumor mass in the mediastinum, the space between the two lungs, in the center of the chest.

Upon undergoing the biopsy, the model was informed that the 18-centimeter tumor mass was, in fact, Hodgkin’s lymphoma.

What is Hodgkin’s lymphoma?

“Hodgkin’s lymphoma is a type of blood cell cancer. It develops mainly in the ganglia. Still, it can affect other locations”, explains the hematologist Pedro Neffáfrom Hospital São Luiz Itam, from Rede D’Or.

The specialist also points out that Hodgkin’s lymphoma represents approximately 10% of all types of lymphoma.

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“The main symptom associated with the disease is enlarged lymph nodes”, explains the hematologist Larissa Teixeira, from Hospital Israelita Albert Einstein. The neck and chest region, as happened with Lopes, are the most affected in around 60% of patients.

Also according to Teixeira, other symptoms can be observed, such as:

– Night sweats, to the point where the person soaks their bedding when sleeping;
– Daily fever with no apparent cause;
– Loss of at least 10% of the individual’s weight in a period of six months;
– Itching on the body.

Hodgkin lymphoma treatment

“Initial treatment for Hodgkin lymphoma almost always includes a combination of chemotherapy and eventually radiotherapy. It is a disease that may require bone marrow transplantation in cases of relapse. Immunotherapy also plays an important role in the worsening or return of the disease”, details Neffá.

Lopes, for example, has six cycles of chemotherapy planned for initial cancer treatment. Each cycle consists of two chemo sessions. At the moment, she is going to the tenth session, in the fifth cycle.

“After 12, I repeat the PET Scan and see if there is still tumor activity or not within the mass. From this, the doctor and her team decide whether it will be necessary to complement the treatment with radiotherapy or not”, details the model.

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Lopes comments that chemotherapy makes her feel severe nausea, a lot of weakness, pain where the medication is applied and loss of strength in her hands and legs. Still, she tries to stay positive in this fight.

“I have been trying to give new meaning to cancer itself, because it is naturally a very difficult process. To this end, I have not stopped carrying out my daily activities, as is possible and safe. Today, medicine has evolved to the point that we have a cure rate. It’s important to hold on to this. Believing that all of this is temporary is the main key,” she reflects.

The hematologist at Hospital São Luiz Itaim emphasizes that Hodgkin’s lymphoma has good response and cure rates, even when the disease is at an advanced stage.

“Remission can reach more than 80% after the first line of treatment in this population with the most advanced disease, with survival rates greater than 90% at 6 years of follow-up. For patients with localized disease, these rates are even better” points out Neffá.