Lymphoma is a type of cancer that begins in the lymph nodes, where foreign particle are filtered and where white blood cells divide and mature. When these white cells develop certain changes in their genes, they can begin to divide too quickly and become cancerous.
Step 1
Check your lymph nodes. Swollen but painless lymph nodes in your armpits, neck, or groin may indicate that you have lymphoma.
Step 2
Be alert for other symptoms. Swollen lymph nodes combined with sweating at night, sudden rapid weight loss, fatigue and a loss of appetite are indicators that you may have lymphoma.
Step 3
Get a biopsy. For a biopsy, a surgeon will either remove a swollen lymph node or take out a small portion of a large tumor to determine if it is cancerous.
Step 4
Have your biopsy looked at by a pathologist. A pathologist will be able to take a look at the cells from the biopsy using a microscope and determine if the cells are cancerous. The pathologist can also do other tests looking for genetic changes in the cells or abnormal proteins that indicate that the cell has become cancerous.
Step 5
Have other lymph nodes checked. Once your doctor has determined that you have lymphoma, she will want to obtain biopsies of other lymph nodes (using a long thin needle) to determine the extent of your lymphoma and to see if it has spread.
