How Boozing Can Save Your Life in the Wrong Sort of a Good Way

 Dr. Graham Collins, consultant hematologist at Oxford University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, spoke of how drinking alcohol triggers rare symptoms of lymphoma in young people and older adults by forcing the unsuspecting victims to seek medical treatment where they were found to have the deadly disease.

Lymphoma, also known as Lymphatic Cancer, is a blood cancer initially targeting the body’s disease-fighting cells known as lymphocytes. The disease-fighting cells targeted by lymphoma include the bone marrow, spleen, thymus gland, lymph nodes, and others. The presence of lymphoma causes these member-cells of the immune system to change and multiply rapidly and out of control.

Just about everyone who drinks is familiar with the not-so-pleasant side effects of alcohol, such as a false sense of euphoria, drowsiness, diarrhea, vomiting, and of course, the hangover that comes with its own set of symptoms including headache, thirst, muscle ache, vertigo, fatigue, and a host of other symptoms. However, many drinkers have no idea drinking alcohol could lead to a cancer diagnosis.

While it isn’t common, consuming alcohol can trigger the symptoms of lymphoma in young people. In the United Kingdom alone, the condition is diagnosed an average of 19,000 times each year. The figure is exponentially higher in the USA, with 90,390 people excepted to be diagnosed with the blood disease in 2021.

The symptoms, as also experienced by individuals in whom they are triggered by boozing, include lumps in the neck, armpits, or groin. The individual may also experience excessive sweating (especially at night), unexplained itching, and unexplained weight loss. People who were 'accidentally' found to have the disease after going to the hospital with complaints of alcohol-induced pain experienced such pain during or soon after ingesting alcohol.

Lymphoma- about 60 different types- is broadly grouped into Hodgkin’s and non-Hodgkin’s lymphomas. Alcohol-related lymphoma falls in the Hodgkin’s group, with symptoms of pain in the neck, armpit, and groin. 

 

So, how does boozing trigger the symptoms of Hodgkin’s lymphoma? Dr. Collins explained that the presence of cancer causes the lymph glands to become packed with abnormal cells. So, the symptoms are triggered because “alcohol can relax blood vessels which may lead to a further increase in pressure within the lymph nodes, putting a strain on the surrounding capsule and causing pain.”

Both men and women are prone to these symptoms, and the pain can be triggered by just a sip of beer or even the alcohol content of liqueur-filled chocolate. If you already experience achy, painful swelling in your lymph nodes areas, such as the armpit and neck, you might be at risk of Hodgkin’s lymphoma. According to Dr. Collins, "The onset of pain is immediate; the patient descriptions of pain vary from 'aching' to 'stabbing,' and the intensity ranges from mild to unbearable, forcing some patients to give up alcohol entirely."

These types of lymphomas are mostly seen in individuals in their early 20s and those over 70 years old. An average of 8000 people in the USA is diagnosed with the disease each year. Thankfully, the number keeps dropping at around 2% each year. Some patients who experienced these symptoms resorted to over-the-counter pain relievers to help with the pain, not knowing that they were experiencing warning signs of the deadly disease of lymphoma.

In some cases, the individual took painkillers every time they drank, so they could manage to enjoy alcohol without the accompanying pain. Doctors in Nashville described the case of a 31-year-old man who did just that for three months before eventually seeking professional help at the hospital. The man spoke of resorting to drinking with ibuprofen as he experienced severe chest pain within minutes of taking just two to three sips of his drink. For such patients, boozing accidentally saved their lives by triggering the symptoms that forced them to seek professional help at the hospital where they were diagnosed and treated.

However, pain is just one of the possible symptoms of lymphoma that may or may not be triggered by boozing. Other symptoms include fatigue, fevers, and excessive sweating at night. Luckily for the 31-year-old man from Nashville, he went into full remission following chemotherapy. The good news is that Hodgkin's lymphoma cancer is not the worst type of cancer, especially when compared to others like Angioimmunoblastic lymphoma (AITL) of the non-Hodgkin’s class of lymphoma.

Dr. Samir Undevia of Edward-Elmhurst Health stated that Hodgkin lymphoma is considered one of the most treatable cancers, with more than 90 percent of patients surviving more than five years. Unfortunately, while you could still live for many years after a Hodgkin’s lymphoma diagnosis, the American Cancer Society’s estimates for the disease is about 960 deaths (570 males and 390 females) in 2021. In the UK, the figure is slightly lower, with over 500 people dying of both Hodgkin’s and non-Hodgkin’s classes of lymphomas each year.

Scientists still don't know what causes lymphoma, neither is alcohol to blame, although the symptoms of Hodgkin's class can be triggered by alcohol. Hodgkin’s lymphoma is a treatable disease, and so is alcoholism. An individual’s quality of life can be drastically reduced by alcohol abuse even without the presence of a deadly disease like cancer. With lymphoma ruled out, excessive consumption of alcohol can cause other types of cancers including throat cancer, breast cancer, colon cancer, mouth cancer, liver cancer, and cancer of the rectum.

Besides cancers, alcohol abuse can also lead to the development of serious health issues like high blood pressure, liver disease, stroke, digestive problems, psychological disorders, and other illnesses.

Just like Hodgkin’s lymphoma is not a death sentence, neither is alcoholism. Both are treatable diseases, and it helps to view alcoholism as first and foremost, a disease. In the United States, rehabilitation centers utilize medication-assisted treatment and psychotherapy to treat individuals suffering from alcoholism, no matter how long they have been living with the disease.