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Jakarta Post

New therapy offers hope for patients

Trusty Sundoro says she could never have imagined she had Non-Hodgkin’s Lymphoma (NHL), an aggressive form of cancer, as she had never fallen ill

Elly Burhaini Faizal (The Jakarta Post)
Jakarta
Mon, June 6, 2011

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New therapy offers hope for patients

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rusty Sundoro says she could never have imagined she had Non-Hodgkin’s Lymphoma (NHL), an aggressive form of cancer, as she had never fallen ill.

“I found lumps on my neck. I thought it was a normal thing because I was crying so much at that time. My husband, who had seemed perfectly healthy, suddenly passed away. I was very shocked and could not stop crying,” Trusty told The Jakarta Post.

She tried various medications first, including several kinds of antibiotics prescribed by a non-specialist physician. Instead of her lumps diminishing, Trusty had severe itchiness and found more lumps in her armpits.

Supported by her family and friends, Trusty underwent a combined chemotherapy treatment called CHOP plus Rituximab (R-CHOP).

Trusty had R-CHOP therapy for eight cycles, from February to August 2009.

She is one of only a few patients with aggressive Non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma who have received the R-CHOP treatment.

The treatment uses Rituximab, the world’s first monoclonal antibody for Non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma treatment.

In July 2004, Rituximab was approved by the Food and Drug Monitoring Agency to be marketed in Indonesia under the brand name MabThera. In March 2002, the European Union approved the use of Rituximab in combination with CHOP chemotherapy.

The newly developed monoclonal antibody now appears to be the gold standard for treating the cancer of the lymphatic system.

Heri Fadjari, a hepatologist and oncologist from Hasan Sadikin Hospital in Bandung, said Rituximab was different from ordinary cancer therapy as it could specifically trace and destroy cancerous lymphocyte cells.

“It targets CD-20 positive lymphocyte cells,” he told the Post.

The antibody starts its work by binding a kind of protein called CD-20 on the surface of B lymphocyte cells, Heri said. About 80 to 90 percent of Non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma is caused by B lymphocyte cells.

The lymphatic system is a vital part of the body’s immune system, and cancerous lymphocyte cells can spread to many organs in the body.

One and a half million people suffer from Non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma — the most common form of lymphoma — throughout the globe.

About 300,000 people die of the disease every year. Most Non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma cases occur in adults between 45 to 60 years of age.

It is difficult to identify the symptoms of Non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma as they can also be similar to symptoms of non-cancerous health problems. Those symptoms include severe coughing, drastic weight loss, fever and severe sweating at night.

Bruises or lumps on the neck, armpits and groin are the most common symptoms of the cancer.

There is currently no screening available for the early detection of Non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma, so patients with symptoms are advised to see a doctor.

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