‘Extreme Weight Loss’ By Obese Student Saves Her Life: She Noticed A Cancerous Lump That Had Been Hiding In Her Fat Rolls

In 2020, she reached her goal she had lost about 100 pounds! (or 45 kgs.)

However, her significant weight loss revealed something a bit more sinister. It was August 2021 when Shelley noticed a small, grape-sized lump on her collarbone. Medical professionals told the now-30-year-old that there wasn't anything to worry about, that her lymph nodes were just swollen from a cold.

But as the months went by, Shelley said the lump "felt bigger," so she went back to her doctor, who performed a needle biopsy on the lump. The biopsy revealed "abnormal cells," which prompted further tests and a surgical biopsy.

On March 30 of this year, Shelley received her diagnosis: stage 2 Hodgkin lymphoma.

 

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"I don't know what the road ahead looks like, but I know one thing: I'm a fighter and I always have been. I'm too stubborn to give in," she posted to Instagram announcing her diagnosis. "What doesn't kill you makes you stronger, and I'm about to get a whole lot stronger."

It was determined that the primary location of Shelley's cancer was behind her ribs, surrounding her heart and lungs. It had also spread to nearby lymph nodes.

Shortly after her diagnosis, she was told her only treatment option was chemotherapy, which prompted Shelley to "freak out," she told the Daily Mail. (She recently completed her fourth round of treatment.)

But the silver lining was that if not for her weight loss, she may not have caught her cancer when she did.

"I showed the surgeon photos of my weight loss, who said, 'Without a doubt, you wouldn't have found that (the lump) if you were overweight. You've saved your own life without even knowing it,'" Shelley said.

Understanding Lymphoma

Lymphoma is a cancer of the immune system that affects infection-fighting cells called lymphocytes. And there are more than 40 different types of the disease.

"Lymphoma is split up into a number of different categories," Dr. Elise Chong, a medical oncologist at Penn Medicine, previously told SurvivorNet.

"The first distinguishing breakpoint, if you will, is non-Hodgkin lymphoma versus Hodgkin lymphoma," she added, "and those sound like two different categories. But non-Hodgkin lymphoma comprises the majority of lymphoma, and Hodgkin lymphoma is a single specific type of lymphoma."

What Kind of Lymphoma Do You Have? Why Your Type Matters

Hodgkin lymphoma the type that Shelley was diagnosed with has distinctive, giant cells called Reed-Sternberg cells. The presence of these cells, which can be seen under a microscope, will help your doctor determine which of the two lymphoma types you have.

There are a few other important differences between non-Hodgkin lymphoma and Hodgkin lymphoma to note. For one thing, non-Hodgkin lymphoma is much more common. And you're more likely to be diagnosed with it after age 55. People usually develop Hodgkin lymphoma at a younger age.

It should be noted that another difference between these two types of lymphoma is that non-Hodgkin lymphoma is more likely to spread in a random fashion and be found in different groups of lymph nodes in the body, while Hodgkin lymphoma is more likely to grow in a uniform way from one group of lymph nodes directly to another.

These two different types of lymphoma behave, spread and respond to treatment differently, so it's important for you to know which type you have.

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