The Risk For The Patients With RA To Develop Lymphoma

Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is an inflammatory joint disease which was proved to have a strong connection with lymphoma.Lymphoma is a type of cancer that affects the lymph nodes. The traget of the treatment in RA is to lower pain and to prevent the disease from worsening. this link between the two diseases is considered by many specialists when establishing the appropriate treatment in RA.

There have been made a lot of studies in order to justify the association between chronic inflammatory conditions such as rheumatoid arthritis and malignant lymphomas.

RA manifests as a gradual deterioration of the tissues surrounding the joints, leading to pain and difficulty when moving the affected fingers, elbows and knees. This happens because the patient's own immune system attacks cells around the joints.

RA is diagnosed more often in women and it leads to lymphoma more often in men. This is why it is believed that most people with RA will never develop lymphoma.

There are different stages of RA. We can speak about a low stage or degree of RA, a moderate and a severe one. This classification is made after the number of joints which are affected. There is also a link between the stage of the RA and the risk for the patients to develop lymphoma. If there are less than 6 joints affected the patient can be diagnosed with a low degree of RA; between 6 and 20 joints affected, there is a moderate RA and over 20 joints affected there is a severe stage of RA.

The patients with a low degree of RA have the lowest risk of developing malignant lymphoma, while those with a moderate and severe level of RA have the highest risk of developing this type of cancer.

There is no connection between the medication used to treat RA and the development of lymphoma. The standard treatment in RA includes methotrexate, anti-malarial agents, oral steroids, non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs and aspirin.

But there are some new treatments which include anti-TNF-alpha drugs which seem to increase the risk for the patients with RA to develop lymphoma.

There are no studies that can prove which kind of RA treatment can reduce the risk of developing lymphoma.

So as it is not very clear what drugs or which of the stages of the RA increases the risk to develop lymphoma, it is very important for the patients to understand the phenomenon and to ask the doctor for help to lower the risk.

For more resources about lymphoma please review http://www.lymphoma-center.com/lymphoma-cancer.htm or http://www.lymphoma-center.com/mantle-cell-lymphoma.htm

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Ocular Lymphoma - A Major Indicator of Brain Involvement in Patients with Non-Hodgkin's Lymphoma

Ocular lymphoma, also referred to as intraocular large cell lymphoma, is a subtype of Non-Hodgkin's Lymphoma that primarily affects the central nervous system. The incidence of ocular lymphoma among the global population has known a pronounced decrease since 1960, although paradoxically it has slightly increased in the last few years. Although there isn't enough evidence to support this theory, medical scientists believe that the recently increased incidence of the disease is mainly caused by prolonged treatments with immuno-suppressing drugs. However, in the absence of conclusive findings, this supposition has been disregarded by most oncologists.

Ocular lymphoma has the highest incidence among the male gender, and predominantly affects people with ages over 50. The categories considered to present the highest risk of developing this subtype of lymphoma are patients diagnosed with AIDS, patients who have suffered complicated surgeries and persons with native impairments of the immune system - especially people affected by the Wiskott-Aldrich syndrome. The implication of lymphoma at ocular level generally occurs in the incipient stages of the disease at brain level. Recent studies have revealed that in the majority of cases, ocular symptoms precede the occurrence of symptoms at the central nervous system level.

Patients diagnosed with Non-Hogkin's Lymphoma at the level of the central nervous system may either present with intracranial nodules, meningeal or periventricular lesions, retinal affections or localized spinal malignant excrescences. Ocular lymphoma generally produces symptoms such as decreased vision, and inflammation of the eye. Despite the fact that ocular lymphoma may cause serious decreases in visual acuity and pronounced inflammation, pain is a rare symptom of this variety of lymphoma. Ocular lymphoma may at first affect only one eye, affecting both eyes in later stages of disease. Although this lymphoma subtype can be overcome with the aid of existing treatments, its occurrence often announces the occurrence of serious impairments at brain level, problems that are more difficult to cure. Thus, ocular lymphoma can be considered a major indicator for Non-Hodgkin's Lymphoma at brain level, allowing doctors to timely intervene in order to minimize the development of further complications.

Patients with suspected ocular lymphoma need to go through a series of neurological investigations. The presence of symptoms such as headache, reduced vision, poor concentration, confusion or memory loss, corroborated with clinical signs of ocular lymphoma clearly point to involvement of the central nervous system in the disease. In order to slow down the progression of the lymphoma and to reduce the risks of complications, doctors often prescribe a series of medication treatments and therapies. Radiation therapy is generally recommended to patients with ocular lymphoma and in more severe cases, this form of therapy is combined with chemotherapeutic drugs.

So, if you want to find out more about non hodgkins lymphoma or even about mantle cell lymphoma please visit this link http://www.lymphoma-center.com/

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