Hank Green — OG YouTuber, author, and TikTok's favorite science guy — announced Friday morning that he was recently diagnosed with cancer.
In a video on his co-owned VlogBrothers YouTube page — where he and brother John Green exchange public updates on their lives, thoughts, and new learnings — Hank shared that over the last few weeks, he started noticing swelling in his armpits. This led him to visit a doctor, where an ultrasound and biopsy revealed he has Hodgkin's Lymphoma.
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Hodgkin's Lymphoma is a cancer that largely affects the lymphatic system, which is a part of the body's immune system. According to the Mayo Clinic, Hodgkin's Lymphoma occurs when "white blood cells called lymphocytes grow out of control, causing swollen lymph nodes and growths throughout the body."
For those with Hodgkin's, they may experience symptoms including swelling of the lymph nodes located in their neck, armpits, and groin area; fever; fatigue; accidental weight loss; night sweats; itching; and pain in the lymph nodes after drinking.
In Hank's personal experience, he says he has not yet felt "sick" but expects things may change during chemotherapy.
When doctors were searching for the source of his swelling, Hank said they were ultimately pleased by the diagnosis because Hodgkin's responds well to treatment. "It's the Cadillac of lymphomas," he joked. "It's the one you want if you're going to get a lymphoma."
"It's one of the most treatable cancers. It responds very well to treatment," he continued. "The goal is [to] cure. The procedure to get there is fairly well know, if unpleasant."
This proves true. According to the University of Pennsylvania's Penn Medicine, Hodgkins is considered "highly treatable." Often, those diagnosed can be cured with chemotherapy alone, the National Health Services reports, and the five-year survival rate sits at about 93%.
The creator went on to share that he'll be undergoing chemotherapy for a minimum of four months and does not expect to be posting videos as regularly as before — which he holds some guilt about. "I'm a very driven person and I take obligations very seriously. They weigh on me a lot and cause a lot of stress when there's space between what I feel I should get done and what I feel like I'm capable of doing."
But he knows the audience he's built will support him. "Nobody is going to expect me to do anything. Nobody is going to be expecting things from me. ... But I'm much more worried about me putting too much pressure on me."
Closing out his video, Hank shared that while the diagnosis has been tough mentally, he's happy that he developed close and meaningful friendships throughout his life. "All of the time I have ever spent investing in friendships — even when they have been hard to try and keep them strong, and even when I have been busy to try and spend time with them — has been joyful in the moment and wise in the long term. I've really needed friends in the last few weeks and I've been very grateful to have them."
As a final request, Hank asked that people sign up for his newsletter, which he says is a creative outlet he believes he may be able to keep up during treatment in place of video creation.
He'd also love movie and book recommendations, so drop some in the comments below!