When Mike Yewdell had these chronic symptoms in 2017—sweating as he slept, itchy ankles, a persistent cough, and daily weight loss—he was perplexed.
Yewdell, who was 27 at the time, believed he had a harmless dry cough for roughly four months. When he extended, it made a cracking sound in his chest and left him sweating profusely in the middle of the night.
He began to have severe dyspnoea by July 2017 and was unable to speak without wheezing.
He chose to look up his symptoms online because he was in dire need of answers.
The Nashville-based businessman told the Daily Mail, “The persistent cough made me go online, where they told me I was either dying of cancer or had some form of pneumonia. It prompted me to go get an X-ray, where [doctors] called me and told me that I had fluid in my lungs and they were worried about my chest region.”
Yewdell initially thought he had walking pneumonia, a moderate lung ailment, and kept devoting all of his energies to developing Campus Protein, his supplement firm.
A milder type of pneumonia called walking pneumonia causes the lungs’ air sacs to fill with mucus and other fluids and the airways to swell.
At the age of 27, Mike Yewdell (pictured) received a diagnosis of stage 2 bulky Hodgkin lymphoma.
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Yewdell’s symptoms continued to worsen, though, and a week later he sought more scans at his neighbourhood emergency room.
Three tumours were found in his chest, the two biggest of which were the size of a tennis ball and a grapefruit, according to a CT scan. He had trouble swallowing because the third tumour encircled his oesophagus.
Doctors determined that Yewdell had stage 2 bulky disease Hodgkin lymphoma based on his tumours.
One kind of blood cancer that arises in the lymphatic system is called Hodgkin lymphoma.
Usually, tumours start in the lymph nodes in the chest cavity and neck.
They may also appear in clusters beneath the arms or in the groin, belly, or pelvis as the malignancy progresses.
Tumours in the chest that are at least one-third as wide as the chest, or little less than four inches across, are classified as “bulky.”
Fever, intense night sweats, ongoing exhaustion, unexplained weight loss, swollen lymph nodes, chest pain, and dyspnoea are typical symptoms.
Ten to twenty-five percent of people with Hodgkin lymphoma have severe itching, usually on their lower limbs.
Yewdell at the time of his X-ray scans, which revealed the three tumours, is shown.
Yewdell started getting radiation, chemotherapy medications, and stem cell transplants. Additionally, he participated in a clinical experiment for immunotherapy.
According to the American Cancer Society, around 9,000 people will receive a Hodgkin lymphoma diagnosis this year, and 1,200 of them will pass away.
I sensed my entire life was about to alter throughout this bizarre event. “He had a story, and I always thought he was an amazing person,” Yewdell recalled. “I remember walking to the toilet to call a kid I mentored.” When I phoned him to hear his story, he told me that he had attempted suicide and that when they went to resuscitate him, they discovered a tumour in his throat—Hodgkin lymphoma. “He ended up becoming vital in my fight and outlook for the rest of my life,” he said.
Yewdell started getting radiation, stem cell transplants, and a combination of chemotherapy medications known as ICE, which contained ifosfamide, carboplatin, and etoposide, shortly after receiving his life-altering diagnosis.
Additionally, he participated in a clinical trial for immunotherapy. “I lived at home with my mom for months, where I could not interact with anyone and had to recover, which entailed me getting my energy back, my immune system stronger, and my strength to do normal activities,” he said. “Then, I entered the workforce which consisted of me going into the office with a face mask and little interaction with anyone.”
In 2019, Yewdell was formally pronounced cancer-free after progressively regaining his vigour.
“I truly love my new outlook on life,” said Yewdell, who tied the knot in May.
Yewdell began to significantly improve by May 2018, when his energy was “back to normal.”
On October 23, 2019, he was formally pronounced cancer-free and is not taking any medicine at this time.
Since then, Yewdell has started his own business and contributed more than $500,000 to cancer research. This past May, he married “the love of my life.”
I genuinely adore my new perspective on life. “I eat my greens every day,” he added. “I am much more present and focus on being as positive as possible with every interaction and relationship I have.” “Every day I wake up, I’m up with all my energy because it’s another day I’m alive and get to live life, which isn’t a luxury everyone has,” I say, making sure I’m constantly moving and doing the things I love.
