Getting sick is a sad reality for many new college students, but while many of them manage to overcome it quickly, the same could not be said for Aaron Delgado who found himself wondering why his symptoms persisted. Delgado, of Dallas, Texas, joined Texas Tech University in the fall of 2023, and during his first semester, he succumbed to the telltale symptoms that a lot of students know all too well. Infectious mononucleosis, otherwise known as mono or kissing disease, is spread through saliva and commonplace among teenagers and young adults.
Indeed, Delgado, 21, told Newsweek that he felt “very sick” and his initial symptoms included fatigue and night sweats. At the time, he “thought it was weird,” but tried not to think too much about it. After all, he was trying to embrace his college life and had so much else to deal with.
They noticed the swollen lump in his neck and suggested that he get it checked. Infection is a common cause of swollen lymph nodes, so multiple doctors insisted Delgado had nothing to worry about, and the swelling would go down eventually. Despite the reassurances, Delgado could not shake the illness and was sick until the summer of 2024.
He had done numerous blood tests in the months prior, but they never showed anything irregular. When Delgado eventually returned home to Dallas, he saw another doctor about his relentless symptoms. Finally, his concerns were addressed when a doctor took a biopsy of the lump in his neck.
But when the results came back, Delgado received the “devastating” diagnosis of stage four Hodgkin lymphoma on July 9. Hodgkin lymphoma can affect the glands, tube-like vessels, lymph nodes and other organs in the body, with symptoms including fever, fatigue, night sweats, itchy skin and weight loss. It was a very depressing time for me, sometimes I didn't even understand my own feelings,” he said.
Treatment consisted of six months of an initial chemotherapy regimen, before a month of more intense chemotherapy. Delgado also underwent a bone marrow transplant to ensure long-term remission. Oncologists suggested that Delgado’s cancer could be a result of the mono he caught at college, which is caused by the Epstein-Barr virus (EBV).
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