congratulations to your husband on successfully completing treatment for his non-hodgkin's lymphoma (nhl)! that is terrific. there are many types of nhl and a couple of different types of remission status. let me see if i can help clarify these things. nhl often is grouped into "aggressive" and "indolent" (non-aggressive) categories. both types of nhl can be treated but the treatment is tailored to the severity of symptoms. both of these types of nhl can go into remission. remission means the lymphoma has been eliminated entirely or reduced substantially. the former is called "complete remission" and the latter is called "partial remission. " the chance of nhl coming back depends on whether the disease was aggressive or indolent and whether it's now in complete or partial remission. the disease may never return or it may come back at any time in the future. that's the frustrating thing about cancers: we can't predict when or if they'll show up again even after they've been treated. indolent nhl that's in complete remission has a lower risk of coming back in the future. aggressive nhl that's in partial remission carries a higher risk of coming back. this chart goes over some risk factors that influence whether or not nhl in remission may recur (come back). the best thing to do is talk to your husband's doctor about his prognosis and what to do to try to keep the nhl from returning. meanwhile celebrate the fact your husband successfully beat his cancer at least for the moment!
if my husbands non-hodgkins lymphoma is in remission how long before it comes back and how long will he live?