From Patient to Physician: How a Hodgkin Lymphoma Diagnosis Shaped Dr. Amir Steinberg’s Calling in Oncology

By chance, a family friend, who also happened to be a radiation oncologist, invited him to his office for a closer look. It was there that he learned his lymph nodes were telltale signs of Hodgkin lymphoma, a discovery that deeply impacted his decision to go into hematology and oncology himself.

What is Hodgkin Lymphoma?

Hodgkin lymphoma and non-Hodgkin lymphoma are the two main types of lymphoma, and their classification depends on the type of white blood cells that are affected and the presence (or absence) of Reed-Sternberg cells.

They are both cancers of the lymphatic system, which includes lymph nodes, spleen, bone marrow, and other immune tissues. Their symptoms can overlap, including swollen lymph nodes, fatigue, fever, night sweats, and unexplained weight loss. However, the way they are treated may vary.

If doctors are unable to detect the Reed-Sternberg cell (a giant cell derived from B lymphocytes), then the lymphoma is categorized as non-Hodgkin lymphoma. However, if Reed-Sternberg cells are present, the lymphoma is diagnosed as Hodgkin lymphoma.

WATCH: The type of lymphoma you have matters.

Lymphoma treatment largely depends on the nature of your specific diagnosis. For non-Hodgkin lymphoma patients, their cancer is more likely to spread randomly and be discovered in different groups of lymph nodes in the body.

Hodgkin lymphoma cancers, on the other hand, are more likely to grow consistently from one group of lymph nodes directly to another.

Dr. Steinberg’s treatment path involved a clinical trial, and he recalls being inspired by the physicians who treated him.

After treatment, remission was just the beginning for the doctor. It sparked a new calling.

WATCH: Dr. Jason Westin explains symptoms associated with lymphoma

During treatment, Dr. Steinberg found himself deeply influenced by the physician who guided him through the uncertainty of cancer at MD Anderson Cancer Center in Texas.

“I was really inspired by my physician there, Dr. Fredrick Hagemeister [an oncologist specializing in lymphoma treatment], and I wanted to pursue a career similar to his, which is affiliated with an academic institution, and exposure to research trials,” Dr. Steinberg explains.

While enrolled in a clinical trial, he remembers working closely with a teaching fellow — an experience that opened his eyes to the blend of science, mentorship, and humanity that defines oncology.

His clinical trial experience, he says, inspired his journey in medicine and, specifically, in oncology and hematology.

Clinical trials can give patients access to incredible new therapies, or what some would call “tomorrow’s medicine,” today.  If you’re looking for a clinical trial, SurvivorNet created a simple, easy-to-use Clinical Trial Finder.

A New Calling

Before cancer, Dr. Steinberg admits he had no clear sense of what career path he wanted to pursue.

“I remember I thought I was a policeman, a lawyer, a teacher,” he explains. His diagnosis helped crystallize his purpose. Medicine offered him all the things he once imagined: service, advocacy, and teaching all wrapped into a single vocation.

“There are certain aspects of my career where I am a teacher, I work with students, I work with trainees … and I really appreciate the history of medicine and how these treatments developed,” Dr. Steinberg says.

Now a specialist in hematologic malignancies and cellular therapy, Dr. Steinberg practices in a field that has transformed dramatically since his own diagnosis.

“We’re in a wonderful period right now for lymphoma treatment, leukemia treatment,” he says. “It is just totally different than when I started my journey.”

Today, he uses his past as a patient as a source of strength and knowledge. It shapes the way he speaks to people facing the same fears he once felt.

“We all like to think that we can put ourselves in other people’s shoes … but I think it helps to have had the lymphoma in the past and to have been a cancer patient,” he says.

When he prepares a patient for a bone marrow biopsy, for example, he can share his own experience rather than just focusing on the basics of the procedure.

“I know what a bone marrow biopsy feels like … I explain to them that I went through that experience as well. I try to explain how I felt, even just the chemotherapy, how I felt during the chemotherapy,” he says.

WATCH: What is a Bone Marrow Biopsy and Why Do I Need One?

He also passes along the advice that grounded him during his first appointment, echoing Dr. Hagemeister’s words.

“Live your life as normally as possible because it’s hard going through this,” he says. “… Normal can vary between patients, but try to find some semblance of normality while you’re undergoing treatment, and it really will make a difference.”

For Dr. Amir Steinberg, the arc from patient to physician highlights the power of the lived experience. Every patient he treats benefits from the perspective he earned long before he ever put on a white coat.

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