Model and Fitness Instructor, 23, Caring For Her Partner Injured In Combat Begins Experiencing Stomach Pains, Night Sweats, Then Learns She Has Stage 4 Hodgkin Lymphoma – ‘I Became a Caregiver Before I Became a Patient’

A 23‑year‑old model and fitness instructor found her life upended when she went from caring for her injured partner to facing her own cancer diagnosis.

While helping him recover from severe frontline injuries, Gali Shachar admits dismissing her growing fatigue, night sweats, stomach pain, and other symptoms as stress — until doctors confirmed she had advanced Hodgkin lymphoma, a blood cancer that begins in the body’s infection‑fighting B cells.

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“I became a caregiver before I became a patient,” she told Ynet Global.

What started as stomach pains and exhaustion soon escalated into a swollen abdomen, diarrhea, and persistent night sweats.

RELATED: The First Steps to Take as a Caregiver When a Loved One is Diagnosed With Cancer

“I was exhausted all the time, but I linked it to not sleeping,” she said. Days after seeing her doctor, she learned the real cause: stage 4 Hodgkin lymphoma.

Hodgkin lymphoma and non‑Hodgkin lymphoma are the two main types of lymphoma, both affecting the lymphatic system — the network of lymph nodes, bone marrow, spleen, and immune tissues. Their symptoms often overlap, but their treatments can differ.

Shachar began chemotherapy, a powerful treatment that targets fast‑dividing cancer cells but can also affect healthy cells. One of the most visible side effects is hair loss, which typically begins a few weeks into treatment.

For Shachar, who works as a model, losing her hair was especially difficult.

 

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“I’m only 23. Losing your hair is a shock, no matter how much you prepare,” she said.

“Some companies stopped working with me.”

Over time, though, she began to reclaim her confidence.

“There are days when the bald look feels right… I wear it with pride. I’m comfortable, even more stylish. Losing my hair gave me the courage to wear clothes I never wore before,” Shachar explained.

WATCH: What is a scalp-cooling device?

Many patients see hair regrowth four to six weeks after treatment, though texture and color can change. Some also turn to cold capping — a scalp‑cooling technique approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration — to help reduce hair loss. These tightly fitted caps, chilled to extremely low temperatures, narrow the blood vessels in the scalp, limiting how much chemotherapy reaches the hair follicles and slowing follicle activity.

Essentially, the caps “cause vasoconstriction, or a narrowing of the blood vessels bringing blood to the scalp,” Dr. Renata Urban, gynecologic oncologist at the University of Washington, explains.

For anyone worried about hair loss during treatment, options like wigs, wraps, hats, and scalp‑cooling devices can offer comfort and control during a challenging time.

Understanding the Types of Lymphomas

Hodgkin Lymphoma and non-Hodgkin lymphoma are the two main types of lymphoma, and their classification depends on the type of white blood cells 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.

WATCH: Dr. Jason Westin explains symptoms associated with lymphoma

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.

B-Cell vs. T-Cell Lymphoma

Doctors classify non-Hodgkin lymphoma based on the type of lymphocytes affected:

B-cell lymphomas account for nearly 85% of non-Hodgkin lymphoma cases. These cancers originate in cells responsible for producing antibodies that identify and fight infections.
T-cell lymphomas, making up 15% of cases, arise in T-cells, which directly attack harmful invaders like bacteria and viruses.
Identifying whether the lymphoma is B-cell or T-cell helps guide treatment options tailored to the disease’s behavior and progression.

Types of B-Cell Lymphoma

• Diffuse large B-cell lymphoma
• Follicular lymphoma
• Small lymphocytic lymphoma (SLL) / Chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL)
• Mantle cell lymphoma
• Marginal zone lymphomas
• Burkitt lymphoma

Types of T-Cell Lymphoma

• T-lymphoblastic lymphoma/leukemia
• Peripheral T-cell lymphomas
• Cutaneous T-cell lymphoma
• Aggressive vs. Indolent (slow-growing) Lymphomas

One of the key distinctions doctors make when diagnosing non-Hodgkin lymphoma is how rapidly the cancer grows and spreads.

Indolent (slow-growing) lymphomas tend to develop over time and may not require immediate aggressive treatment.
Aggressive lymphomas spread quickly and need intensive treatment to prevent further progression.

Dr. Jennifer Crombie, medical oncologist at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, explains that understanding whether the lymphoma is indolent or aggressive is essential, as they require very different treatment approaches.

What Treatment for Non-Hodgkin Lymphoma Looks Like?

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.

WATCH: Non-Hodgkin lymphoma treatment options

“There are some lymphomas that are very treatable but not curable,” Dr. Lawrence Piro told SurvivorNet.

Dr. Lawrence Piro is the President and CEO of The Angeles Clinic and Research Institute in Los Angeles, a Cedars-Sinai affiliate. He adds that some lymphomas progress quickly if left untreated.

Non-Hodgkin lymphoma treatment depends on the type, stage, and how fast it grows. People with aggressive non-Hodgkin lymphoma can expect to get a chemotherapy combination called R-CHOP, which is a drug cocktail consisting of chemotherapy drugs plus an antibody drug and a steroid to treat diffuse large B-cell non-Hodgkin lymphoma.

R-CHOP stands for:

• R: Rituximab (Rituxan) is a monoclonal antibody that attaches to a specific protein called CD20, which sits on the surface of B cells. It targets cancerous cells and destroys them.
• C: Cyclophosphamide is a type of chemotherapy drug
• D: Doxorubicin hydrochloride (hydroxydaunomycin) is a type of chemotherapy drug
• V: Vincristine sulfate (Oncovin) is a type of chemotherapy drug
• P: Prednisone is a steroid that lowers inflammation

Patients receiving R-CHOP receive the drug in six cycles that are three weeks apart.

“R-CHOP is a cocktail of drugs. There are five different drugs in that recipe,” Dr. Jennifer Crombie, medical oncologist at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, tells SurvivorNet.

WATCH: Understanding R-CHOP treatment.

R-CHOP side effects can include:

• Tiredness and weakness
• Hair loss
• Mouth sores
• Bruising and bleeding
• Increased risk of infection
• Appetite loss and weight loss
• Changes in bowel movements

Immunotherapy and targeted therapy are also treatment options for non-Hodgkin lymphoma patients.

Rituximab (Rituxan) was the first immunotherapy drug approved to treat some forms of non-Hodgkin lymphoma. “Rituximab is the immunotherapy that has been approved the longest, and we have the most experience with lymphoma,” Dr. Chong tells SurvivorNet.

Rituxan has side effects, including fever, chills, swelling under the skin, itching, and mild shortness of breath.

Brentuximab vedotin (Adcetris) is a relatively new targeted treatment for non-Hodgkin lymphoma and Hodgkin lymphoma. This drug is an antibody-drug conjugate that combines an antibody (a type of protein that recognizes foreign substances in the body) with a drug that treats cancer. It uses a particular protein to deliver medicine directly to the cancer cell.

Non-Hodgkin lymphoma can also be treated with radiation, which aims beams of intense energy at the cancer to stop cancer cells from growing and dividing.

Questions for Your Doctor

If you are dealing with a lymphoma diagnosis, it’s important to ask your doctor a series of questions so you will have an idea of what your next steps will look like. To help you during this difficult time, SurvivorNet has some questions to kickstart your conversation with your physician.

• What type of lymphoma do I have?
• What does my pathology report say about my diagnosis?
• Should I get a second opinion before I explore possible treatment options?
• Based on my diagnosis, what do you anticipate my treatment path?
• What common side effects should I expect when I begin treatment?
• Will I be able to continue working and performing normal daily activities during treatment?
• Where can I get help working with the insurance company regarding treatment costs?
• Who do you recommend I get mental health help from during my treatment?

Learn more about SurvivorNet's rigorous medical review process.

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