Treatment for lymphoma depends on its type and stage as well as the overall health, preferences, and goals of the patient. UT Southwestern Medical Center’s lymphoma team works with each patient to determine the most appropriate treatment.
While many patients with lymphoma need immediate treatment to achieve an optimal outcome, others require no treatment until years after their diagnosis.
In cases of low-grade lymphoma, for example, most patients receive no immediate treatment unless they experience symptoms. We monitor patients with low-grade lymphoma regularly for any changes.
For patients with lymphoma who do require treatment, we offer:
- Chemotherapy, which delivers drugs through the bloodstream to reach cancer cells throughout the body. Chemotherapy generally involves several rounds of treatments, spread out over months.
- Immunotherapy, which involves manipulating a patient’s immune system so it attacks lymphoma cells. UT Southwestern offers Yescarta and Kymriah CAR T-cell therapies for the treatment of lymphoma. CAR T is immunotherapy in which a patient’s T-cells, a type of white blood cell, are genetically modified to include a chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) that is designed to bind to specific proteins on cancer cells. This reprograms the T-cells to recognize and attack the patient’s specific cancer.
- Bone marrow transplantation, in some cases, including for patients in remission or who relapse during or after treatment. UT Southwestern has the top survival rate for bone marrow transplants in Texas.
- Opportunities to participate in clinical trials of promising new lymphoma treatments.
Some types of lymphoma tend to return; in cases of recurrence, we newly evaluate and treat patients as appropriate.
