Treatments and Therapies for Non-Hodgkin Lymphoma

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Fred Hutch Cancer Center provides comprehensive care for people with all subtypes and stages of non-Hodgkin lymphoma (NHL). We offer advanced therapies and new options available only through clinical trials (also called clinical studies). Your treatment will depend in large part on your subtype of NHL and if it’s slow growing (indolent) or fast growing (aggressive).

Many people are treated with chemotherapy, small molecule inhibitor drugs or immunotherapy. Providers may use these one at a time or together. Some people need radiation therapy or a blood or marrow transplant. Others do not need any active treatment for years, but they should be carefully monitored over time. We’ll tailor your treatment to you.

Non-Hodgkin Lymphoma Care Tailored to You

You and your family are our top priority. At Fred Hutch Cancer Center, we offer comprehensive and compassionate care — personalized to you. You'll have access to the latest treatment options, clinical trials and supportive care services. 

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How We Treat Non-Hodgkin Lymphoma at Fred Hutch

Watchful Waiting

If you have slow-growing NHL and no symptoms, your physician may recommend watchful waiting. This is also called observation or surveillance. It means you and your physician closely watch your health for any changes, like the start of symptoms. Symptoms can take many years to appear, or they may never appear. So, you may not need active treatment for a long time. For NHL patients with slow-growing NHL and no symptoms, research shows that immediate treatment will not help. 

During watchful waiting, you will visit your physician for exams and have blood tests and imaging tests on a regular schedule. The schedule depends mainly on your NHL subtype. Between scheduled visits, you are not on your own. We are here. If you notice health changes, call so we can check if you do need active treatment.

The main benefits of watchful waiting include:

  • You can keep living your life without much disruption.
  • You will not have side effects from treatments you do not need.
  • When you do need treatments later, they will still be just as effective.
  • More effective treatment options might be available in the future. 

Chemotherapy

Chemotherapy helps to destroy cancer cells wherever they may be in your body. Usually, it means you get anti-cancer medicine through an intravenous (IV) line. Then the medicine travels throughout your body through your bloodstream. Most people with NHL start treatment by getting chemotherapy. Many people go into complete remission with a mix of chemotherapy and radiation therapy. 

Learn About Chemotherapy for NHL

Radiation Therapy

Radiation therapy (also known as external-beam radiation therapy or EBRT) aims a high-energy beam at areas of cancer from a machine outside your body.

Learn About Radiation Therapy for NHL

Small Molecule Inhibitors (Targeted Therapy)

Small molecule inhibitors are drugs that target proteins or biological processes that cancer cells rely on to grow and survive. Many options are available for NHL, and the list keeps growing as researchers develop and test new ones. 

Learn About Small Molecule Inhibitors Used to Treat NHL

Immunotherapy

Fred Hutch is a leader in developing immunotherapies and giving patients early access through clinical trials. Antibody therapies and immune checkpoint inhibitors are two important options.

CAR T-cell therapy, a type of cellular immunotherapy, has been a game changer for some patients. This innovative therapy engineers a patient’s own T cells to zero in on enemy cancer cells. Fred Hutch was one of the first cancer centers to offer cellular immunotherapies approved for NHL by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. 

Learn About Immunotherapy for NHL

Blood or Marrow Transplant

A blood or marrow transplant resets your body’s ability to make healthy blood cells after you get strong chemotherapy or total-body radiation therapy. For NHL, your provider may recommend a transplant if your first treatment does not put your NHL into complete remission or if your disease comes back. Most transplant recipients with NHL have a transplant using stem cells from their own body (an autologous transplant).

Learn About Blood or Marrow Transplants for NHL

Why Choose Fred Hutch for Non-Hodgkin Lymphoma Treatment

At Fred Hutch, we understand this may be one of the most intense and challenging experiences you and your family ever go through. We are here to provide the care you need.

Team-Based Care from Specialists

Fred Hutch has hematologist-oncologists, radiation oncologists and pathologists who specialize in NHL, as well as surgeons and transplant oncologists if you need them. We offer the most advanced diagnostic, treatment and recovery programs. Along with treating your cancer, we also offer a range of services to support you and your caregiver. This is part of how we take care of you — not just your disease. From registered dietitians to Spiritual Health clinicians to social workers, our experts know how to care for people with NHL.

Treatment Tailored to You

We view treatment as a collaborative effort. Your Fred Hutch physicians will explain all your options. We’ll recommend a treatment plan to get you the best results based on the subtype and stage of your cancer, the treatment’s potential side effects, as well as your age and overall health. We provide all standard therapies. Our experts are national leaders in NHL research and have developed many of these approaches.

Clinical Trials to Improve Outcomes

Many of our patients receive promising therapies by taking part in NHL clinical trials. These research studies are done by physician-scientists from Fred Hutch and UW Medicine. They test new treatments or new ways to use current treatments. Every advance in cancer treatment in recent years has come out of clinical trials. By doing trials, we can offer more treatment options for people like you.