First Coast News
by Lindsey Boetsch

Chances are, you never heard of the cancer, Waldenstrom macroglobulinemia. It's a non-Hodgkin Lymphoma. It's very rare and only 1,000 to 1,500 people are diagnosed each year. There's not a lot of research and funding for it, but, Christopher Edgerton is trying to change that.  "There sort of isn't a treatment, to start off with, it's a wait and watch, which seems funny because someone tells you you have got a lymphoma and you do nothing about it," Edgerton said. He was diagnosed with this cancer this time last year. He produces one too many proteins, which leads his immune system to not work as well as it should. He came to Mayo Clinic here in Jacksonville where he met Dr. Sikander Ailawadhi. "Initially he didn't have any symptoms, but slowly and gradually as he was followed, he started developing this neuropathy, this numbness and tingling in his hands and feet and it got to the point where it was affecting his activities, things that he liked to do," Ailawahdi said.

Reach: First Coast News refers to three television stations in Jacksonville, Florida. WJXX, the ABC affiliate; WTLV, the NBC affiliate; and WCWJ, the CW affiliate.

Context:  Sikander Ailawadhi, M.D. is a Mayo Clinic hematologist.  Mayo Clinic is one of the leading medical facilities in the country for the diagnosis and management of various blood disorders. Hematology specialists at Mayo Clinic are internationally recognized as leaders in the field of blood disorders. Experts in hematology at Mayo Clinic are at the leading edge of research to continuously improve diagnosis and treatment options.

Contact:  Paul Scotti

Tags: Christopher Edgerton, Dr. Sikander Ailawadhi, First Coast News, Non-Hodgkin lymphoma, Uncategorized