Former Sen. Fred Thompson announced Wednesday that he has indolent lymphoma and that it is in remission. The following is his full statement to FOX News:

“We have all seen the courageous battle that Elizabeth and John Edwards are fighting, and there are so many others. Fortunately, there are an increasing number of good stories because of the medical advances that have been made.

“I have friends in politics, some in Congress, some running for President, and others who have successfully dealt with cancer. It is certainly no respecter of persons and totally non-partisan.

“That point was driven home to me about 2 1/2 years ago when, shortly after a routine physical, I was diagnosed with what the doctors call an indolent lymphoma. Of the 30-plus kinds of lymphoma this is a ‘good’ kind, if there is such a thing.

“I have had no illness from it, or even any symptoms. My life expectancy should not be affected. I am in remission, and it is very treatable with drugs if treatment is needed in the future — and with no debilitating side effects.

“I am one of the lucky ones. There are many lucky ones today. And for all of our diversity, we share one thing in common — a deep appreciation for the fact that we live in the United States of America and have the best medicine and the best doctors the world has even known.”

Non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma is a disease our family is sadly too familiar with.

A beloved young family member died from this disease a little over a year ago while my daughter-in-law is still battling it.

Fred Thompson has the slow version of the disease rather than the aggressive version.

My daughter-in-law is scheduled to go to Houston’s MD Anderson cancer hospital on May 14 to begin her second round of treatment with Rituxan, the drug that put Sen. Thompson into remission.

This drug, as explained to me, seeks out and surrounds the lymphoma cells to hopefully put you into remission. Sometimes more than one round of the therapy has to be done for it to do its job.

The patient doesn’t lose his or her hair, as in chemo, and doesn’t get violently sick after a treatment, but not everyone can take it.

My daughter-in-law has to be monitored closely while taking a treatment because she naturally is hypo-glycemic and for some reason her blood pressure shoots up into the stroke range.

She had no other side effects from last year’s treatment and was able to go back to work the next day since the treatment took most of the day.

Since he responded to a treatment I am familiar with, it is pretty safe to say he will stay in remission for many years.

I would have no problem voting for him, but of course, his vice-presidential pick would be very important in helping the American people to decide he has their votes.

Update: Facts on Indolent Lymphoma:

Indolent Lymphoma: A type of lymphoma that tends to grow and spread slowly, and has few symptoms. Also called low-grade lymphoma.

• Non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma is a type of cancer.

• Lymphoma is a general term for cancers that develop in the lymphatic system.

• Hodgkin’s disease is one type of lymphoma.

• All other lymphomas are grouped together and are called non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma.

• Lymphomas account for about 5 percent of all cases of cancer in this country.

• Doctors have used a variety of terms to classify the many different types of non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma.

• Most often, they are grouped by how the cancer cells look under a microscope and how quickly they are likely to grow and spread.

• Aggressive lymphomas, also known as intermediate and high-grade lymphomas, tend to grow and spread quickly and cause severe symptoms.

• Indolent lymphomas, also referred to as low-grade lymphomas, tend to grow quite slowly and cause fewer symptoms.

• Chemotherapy and radiation therapy are the most common treatments for non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma.

• Bone marrow transplantation, biological therapies, or surgery are sometimes used.

• Chemotherapy is the use of drugs to kill cancer cells.

• The most common symptom of non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma is a painless swelling of the lymph nodes in the neck, underarm, or groin.

• There will be about 63,190 new cases of Non-Hodgkins Lymphoma in U.S. in 2007

• About 18,660 people will die of NHL in U.S. in 2007

• NHL is more common in men than in women

• Whites are affected by NHL more often than African Americans or Asian Americans.

• A person’s risk of getting NHL during his or her lifetime is 1 in 50

Sources: National Cancer Institute, American Cancer Society

Written by ~J~

3 Responses to “Fred Thompson’s Statement About His Cancer”

1. Tonto says:

   April 12, 2007 at 7:56 am

   I lived and died with lymphoma for three years. I watched and stayed by my daughter’s side as she slowly slipped away. I was at her bedside when she took her last breath.
   Low-grade lymphoma? There is no such thing. Don’t kid yourself.
2. ~J~ says:

   April 12, 2007 at 10:35 am

   It was your daughter I spoke of in the post, but I wasn’t sure you wanted to share that painful memory.
3. smh10 says:

   April 12, 2007 at 3:08 pm

   Tonto:

   I am so sorry for your loss. While I cannot say that I could ever feel your pain I can think of nothing worse than losing a child.