Nicole's Hodgkin Lymphoma Story: 'I Just Didn't Feel Right' | The Patient Story

Nicole was a wife and mother of three when she was diagnosed with classical Hodgkin’s lymphoma. After giving birth to her third child, she didn't feel "normal." She knew something was wrong when she felt extreme fatigue and when a rash started appearing on her skin. But doctors kept telling her she was fine and blamed her symptoms on postpartum.

Desperate for answers, she turned to a functional medicine doctor who gave her a multi-cancer early-detection test. After testing positive for cancer, she then started her cancer journey.

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[rachaelpate]

I was diagnosed with stage 4 Hodgkins Lymphoma when I was 15. All the signs were there, we just didn’t realize the signs at the time. I’m 53 now & cancer free Praise God!

[debbieschultz]

I had a chest exray from an allergy doctor 3 weeks before Christmas, and it showed I had a huge mass in my lung so big it was pushing out my rib. I went to my primary Dr, and she scheduled me for a pet scan. I lit up like a Christmas tree. I had over 150 masses, and 5 were in my heart. Couldn't get in with a cancer Dr. Because it was the holidays, so I was a walking dead woman for 2 weeks... unbelievable how your life changes.. I was 47 years old, but I felt fine except for the fact that I was dying young. So I had to drive 3 hours to a hospital to get a biopsy of my tumors it wasn't cancer guys. I had histoplasmosis, it was from bird feces, my husband was tilling up soil under blue spruce trees that were 100 years old, and I was inhaling that into my lungs. That was the first time I realized what a lottery winner feels like. For this young woman, I can feel your pain and worry. I really think you have what it takes to beat this. I will be praying for you 🙏

[ava-graycegenovese]

All doctors and specialists need to hear this. It shouldn’t be this hard to save our lives.

[psychmatisa]

Im a psychologist. What she’s describing is a « gut feeling » and « intuition » and it’s REAL and should be followed. Period.

[sierranyokka]

Our healthcare system is so broken. The amount of energy we have to put in to just get testing is absolutely mind boggling. People dealing with serious issues should not be under this amount of stress just to get a diagnosis.

Thank you for sharing your story with us.

[leanneharrington]

I was misdiagnosed for over a year, because I was 19. When I finally burst into tears, & pleaded with the doctor to do SOMETHING, I was diagnosed with stage 4 Hodgkin’s Lymphoma. Obviously, I survived, but I shouldn’t have been ignored.

[ClaudiaMattheiss]

I am where you were. I have been feeling like something is wrong for 2 years. I have had scans and bloodwork and everything showed nothing. I have been so tired, I have had pain in my chest and neck but everything was always fine. Christmas I got really sick and I felt like I never recuperated. End of February I felt so sick I went to the ER. Double pneumonia! But something else showed up...lots of enlarged lymphnodes. Next was pet scan and they lit up on that scan. This may sound weird but I am so glad that people are finally listening! I have been feeling unwell for 2 years, can't sleep for 1 year because of night sweats and at 56 I am so tired of having everything blamed on Menopause.

[jessebell]

Love this woman’s attitude. She is strong and such a spit fire. I pray she lives a long happy life❤❤

[psychmatisa]

Let’s protect this woman with everything we have!!! She is a GIFT to humanity ❤❤❤

[nonyabiness]

I’m glad you pushed it! I beat breast cancer 13 years ago. Last year I thought I had colon cancer. Long story short, colonoscopy was clear but I still felt off. A month later I went in for my annual mammogram and they found it. Triple negative breast cancer. Bilateral mastectomy, chemo, all of it! That’s the first, I knew something was wrong. About a month ago I hit a deer on the highway. I had been complaining that the chemo port catheter was poking my heart, I couldn’t breathe, I was waking up gasping, well because of the deer and a trip to the hospital they found 2 pulmonary embolism. I’m glad the ER doctors listened to me. That deer saved my life! No one took me seriously! Self advocacy is a must! Prayers to you! You look like a fighter and you have your reasons! 💪🏽🌷

[sunnynights]

So disappointing to hear that it’s such a struggle to get a diagnosis. It shouldn’t have to be this hard. Thank you for sharing your story, and for teaching all of us how to self advocate. 🎉

[susanlanglo-killian]

I love your story and your attitude. I am a registered nurse and cancer survivor. I had the “advantage” of being older when I was diagnosed. I do believe that younger people are brushed aside too easily and told “you are too young”. That’s just not true anymore. 45+ years in nursing the one thing I learned is that if a patient told me they didn’t feel right that was my clue to watch them like a hawk. To look beyond the obvious. Especially when I worked ICU. All their numbers could be perfect and then after saying something is wrong, or I don’t feel right they would crash! People need to believe in their innate ability to understand their bodies and not be pushed around by the experts. Health care is no longer what it was when I first graduated in 1974. Now it’s all about protocols not about observation and using your brain to make care decisions. Today you input the information and the computer spits out a care plan… holy hell will ensue if you disagree with the “protocol”. I am so glad you spoke up for yourself! You were brave, self assertive and you trusted your instincts. Good on you! God bless you and just keep being strong❤️

[michellelair]

Thank God you advocated for yourself!! We have to ALWAYS. My husband is a stage 4 cancer survivor (renal cell carcinoma). He’s been in remission for 6 years. I am the one that asks ALL THE QUESTIONS until I get the answers. Sending you lots of love and strength. ❤

[fineartlifestyling]

What a sadly familiar story. It’s extremely traumatic, emotionally devastating, psychologically depleting, and overall isolating experience. Wishing you so much love and compassion.

[charliestrickland]

This just randomly came up on my feed. You may have saved my life.

[AUniqueTreasure]

My story is similar. Took over a year for the Drs to figure it out. I did not present straight forward. My mass in the chest was 9 inches wide. Drs could not feel anything either because the lymphoma grew inward. I had masses in my throat and chest that started choking me. The other masses spread through my body. I ended up with night sweats towards the end before my diagnosis. I had a hysterectomy in 2015 May, the 3rd day after, the rash you showed the picture of started on my arm and would come and go then it ended up all over my body by 2016 May. I felt like I was being bitten by fire ants and mosquitoes 24/7. I2 close to suicide because Drs specialist specialist could not figure it out. I could go on and on but you basically told the story. I'm disabled now because the chemo destroyed my body. I still have gratitude and lots of good and love that surrounds me. The check is over, I've been in remission for 5years but I cannot go out in the sun, I can Harley walk around the block when it's over cast, I have about 3 solid hours of energy a day then I'm done. I could not find anyone like me until this story. This has been a nightmare but I'll end with this, God showed up and had carried me when I couldn't. 🙏

[shadow]

Women experience such an incredible amount of medical gaslighting. It took me so many years to get my MS diagnosis for this exact reason. I was told my symptoms were being caused by my age (36 at the time) and because I was a mother. Many doctors claimed I was making up my symptoms or that I had a functional disorder. I'm so sorry it took you so long to get a diagnosis.

[KnockOut]

I’ve been gaslit for the past 15 years or so 😢 now just undergoing work up for lymphoma. Thank you so much for the validation. I’ve beaten myself up for years for being lazy and tired all the time.

[msullivan]

Be mean. Be difficult. Make people listen to you. You shouldn’t have had to coordinate all that either. I am so sorry you went through all this.

[carolynrobirds]

God bless you! My mother had lymphoma back in the mid 80’s. Then about 4 yrs later, the cancer came back as leukemia. She did not make it through that and passed away in 1990. I was only 23 at the time and it was devastating to me, bc she was my best friend!
I know there are so many more treatments available now, that weren’t back then. I can’t help but feel if there’d been the medical advances back then, she would have made it through! She was a strong woman and a strong Christian, and she was the bravest person I’ve ever known!
I pray for a complete healing for you, for good!
Thank you so much for sharing your story! I think you’re so brave and amazing for standing up for yourself and what you knew was off within your body!
I don’t believe anyone should have to go through what you did, in order to get help! You hear it said so much, that early detection in any type of illness or cancer, can be the key to a hopefully complete recovery, but the hoops people have to jump through just to get something done or covered by insurance, wastes too much precious time!
God bless you and your family!🙏🏻❤️