New Hope

Eat Well

This blog is for my family and friends to follow how things are progressing, and to help anyone who has Non Hodgkins SLL/CLL Lymphoma or loves someone who has been diagnosed. 

There has been a positive development with my disease. The size of lymph nodes has decreased! Comparing the CT scan done in May 2025...

May 2025 CT Report

...and the PET/CT scan done in April 2026...

April 2026 PET/CT Report

You see that the largest conglomerate of swollen lymph nodes last year was 8.1 cm (81 mm, which is 3.2 inches) and this year the largest conglomerate noted is 42 mm (4.2 cm, or 1.65 inches). This is a 51% reduction! 

My oncologist did say that this disease "waxes and wanes", meaning the swelling tends to increase and decrease over time, and it is only when other life-threatening symptoms develop that treatment is recommended. For example, because it was > 8cm, she was planning to start treatment once we had all the staging tests done and sorted the cause of anemia (ruled out internal bleeding). However, since the more recent scan shows this significant decrease in size, she told me on May 14th that, depending on the results of the bone marrow biopsy, we could continue to "watch and wait" (meaning, hold off on treatment, i.e., wait to start the pills, and only monitor the disease with blood tests and a followup CT scan, because treatment has its risks and could do more harm than good). 

My husband and I feel new hope today because this suggests that what I have been doing for the past year to slow/stop/reverse the progress of this disease seems to be making a difference. I have been taking supplements that were recommended to me by my optometrist, based on his son's experience with the same type of lymphoma - namely, an antioxidant named GLUTATHIONE. I researched this first and found several online reports suggesting it could help.

• National Institutes of Health (NIH) - Abstract about Glutathione and Lymphoma
• There are several abstracts in the NIH database related to Glutathione and cancer, here is another particularly informative one: Role of Glutathione in Cancer

After hearing the story of my optometrist's son's experience and researching if glutathione was safe to take, I found enough data to support taking it and started taking it daily in late May 2025. In November 2025, I learned about "NAC" and added that to my daily supplement list. 

I also, based on what my optometrist shared, started avoiding products with glyphosate and other pesticides - I started buying more organic and Non GMO foods and avoided processed foods, anything with corn and soy ingredients (because those crops tend to be the most toxic, with regard to pesticide application and glyphosate present in those crops). You know, Trump issued an executive order protecting corporations that use glyphosate and pesticides (the opposite of what he promised in his campaign, by the way) -- and here's the thing I want to point out about that -- you cannot force us to consume glyphosate. We, the people, the consumers who drive economic trends, can boycott glyphosate and pesticide toxins in our food chain by purchasing certified Non GMO products and avoiding processed foods that contain ingredients like corn and soy byproducts. While it may cost a little more, it will cost far more in medical copays and pharmaceutical treatments to ingest these common poisons in our food supply. Even if you cannot 100% avoid them, you can do more than you have been doing to eat better, cleaner foods. 

We all need more antioxidants in our lives. They help reduce the risk of disease, and they help us detox and heal our bodies. ❤

This is a snapshot of my antioxidant daily average, including supplements,  since I started using Cronometer app to track nutrition (Nov 6, 2025 - May 16, 2026).