In early 2024, Shailah Handy felt lumps in her neck with concerning firmness and distribution. Her doctor scheduled imaging scans a few weeks out, but the appearance of a new lump in her armpit only days later convinced Shailah to go to the emergency department.
Her intuition was right: By February, Shailah was diagnosed with stage 4 Hodgkin lymphoma.
“It just felt like something was off,” Shailah said.
Hodgkin lymphoma is a blood cancer, affecting immune system cells and often deposits in many lymph nodes around the body. While it’s scary to get a stage 4 cancer diagnosis, UW Health | Carbone Cancer Center medical oncologist Dr. Vaishalee Kenkre told her new treatment advances mean patients with Hodgkin lymphoma can still have curative treatment, even at later stages.
Shailah's health depended on a care team that quickly established a plan, scheduled her appointments, answered her questions and provided a 24-hour call line for her to check on concerning symptoms. Still in shock of a cancer diagnosis, it was only later that Shailah realized she had experienced many subtle symptoms like increased fatigue, weight loss and chest pain.
“Once you find out you have cancer, there’s a flurry of activity. I got in for all my appointments so quickly — that’s what’s awesome about Carbone. I didn’t have to worry about that,” she said.
Shailah’s treatment plan called for 12 infusions of chemotherapy, as well as immunotherapy which Kenkre suggested based on new research showing improved effectiveness with that combination.
Like many miracles in modern medicine, Shailah was fortunate to hear encouraging news quickly, which helped to reduce some of the stress from the diagnosis.
“One of the surprises was that after my first scan following chemo in April, we could see the treatment working,” Shailah said.
Shailah completed her chemotherapy in August 2024 and follow-up scans since haven't shown any new evidence of cancer. During those six months of treatments, Shailah recalls getting to know her treatment staff well. They made sure she understood every facet of her treatment plan. Feeling well-informed helped make a difficult time easier, Shailah said.
“They were all so amazing,” she said of her care team.
Shailah was also grateful for the strong support of family and friends, especially her 11-year-old daughter. At least one person came with Shailah to every appointment. She brought a video projector, a colorful disco party light and wore a collection of fun outfits to keep spirits high. Finding ways to make herself and others laugh helped Shailah relieve the stress of dealing with treatments.
“Treatments are not a fun time, so we did the little things to find humor,” she recounted.
Having cancer showed Shailah the importance of taking things slowly and letting herself get used to new routines. She advises others with a cancer diagnosis to be their own advocate and make sure they understand their care plan. The open communication of her care team was something Shailah appreciated greatly.
“Going into treatments, I didn’t know there was so much I didn’t know," Shailah recalled. "People have their own experiences, so that’s why it’s so important to speak up and ask lots of questions.”