A fitness trainer has revealed the ’embarrassing’ and seemingly harmless symptom that led to him being diagnosed with cancer at the age of 25.
Dilan Patel, from Ilford, east London, recalled living a normal life for someone his age in his mid-20s, working hard and hanging out with friends.
However, he started to notice something strange.
‘I woke up in the middle of the night drenched in sweat. I mean soaked,” he explained in a TikTok video that has nearly 200,000 views.
‘My clothes, my bed, everything would be wet. It happened 2-3 times a night.
At first Mr Patel ‘waved it off’ because it was too hot at night, but the problem persisted for months.
It wasn’t until two years later, when the symptoms became unbearable, that he finally sought help from a GP.
Patel then received the devastating news that he had Hodgkin’s lymphoma – a rare form of blood cancer that develops in a network of blood vessels and glands throughout the body.
Hodgkin lymphoma is rare: only around 2,200 cases are diagnosed in Britain each year.
Although this represents less than one percent of all cancer cases, it still means that on average, six Britons are diagnosed with the disease every day.
Night sweats were Patel’s most troubling symptom, he wrote on social media, but it wasn’t the only sign.
“My skin was incredibly itchy, so much so that I carried lotion everywhere with me, convinced it was just dry skin,” he said.
‘I even noticed lumps in my neck, but I thought it was my muscles growing from all my training at the gym.’
Tests ultimately revealed that Patel had a total of five tumors, including one in his lung.
Spread to other parts of the body means the cancer was stage 4, the most serious stage of the disease in which most patients are incurable.
Although Hodgkin’s lymphoma is considered by experts to be an aggressive form of cancer due to its ability to spread, it is also considered highly treatable through chemotherapy, which is sometimes combined with radiation therapy.
Your browser does not support iframes.
Overall, three in four patients are expected to be alive ten years after their diagnosis, although the disease still kills just over 300 Britons a year.
Survivors of Hodgkin lymphoma may also face a range of health problems after successful cancer treatment.
According to the NHS, this includes an increased risk of developing other blood cancers, such as leukemia, and an increased risk of heart and lung disease.
As with many forms of cancer, the number of cases of this disease has increased by 38 percent since the 1990s.
The increase was greatest among Britons over the age of 70, but cases among younger adults have also increased by 21 percent.
People between the ages of 20 and 40 and those aged 75 and over are at greatest risk for Hodgkin’s lymphoma, with men having a slightly higher risk of the disease than women.
Hodgkin’s lymphoma develops in the type of infection-fighting white blood cells called lymphocytes.
Cancerous lymphocytes develop abnormally, causing lumps to form in the lymph nodes the neck, armpit and groin.
Common symptoms include night sweats and persistent itching, as well as unintentional weight loss, high temperature and persistent coughing.
Infections such as that of the Epstein-Barr virus, which causes glandular fever, is a known risk factor for Hodgkin’s lymphoma.
Cancer charity Cancer Research UK estimates that two out of five cases of Hodgkin’s lymphoma are due to an Epstein-Barr virus infection.
Mr Patel urged anyone experiencing symptoms that bother them not to ignore them and seek medical help.
“If there’s one thing I’ve learned from this experience, it’s to pay attention to your body,” he said.
“Those little signs and symptoms? They are there for a reason. Don’t wait until it’s too late.’
Hodgkin’s lymphoma can also rarely cause bizarre symptoms, such as pain, numbness, or tingling sensations while drinking alcohol, for reasons that scientists still don’t fully understand.