What is Hodgkin's Lymphoma?: In the beginning

My good friend Kristen and I recently started a support group for young cancer survivors. Having to tell my story made me realize how much is still so abundantly clear in my mind. So, here's my story for friends and family to read:

I was diagnosed with Hodgkin's Lymphoma on May 30, 2007. I went in for a lymph node biopsy as a "normal" 25-year-old and came out of surgery as a 25-year-old cancer patient. Luckily, while I was under my surgeon Dr. Morris arranged for a bone marrow biopsy to be done. I was told if I came out with two incisions I would have cancer.
I remember waking up groggy in the recovery room and I asked the nurse a million times if I had one or two incisions. When she answered two, I had to ask her again, because I could not beleive it.
I had cancer.
I remember shivering and shaking. I could not get warm as the shock of my diagnosis become abundantly clear in my groggy mind. All I wanted was to see my parents and find out what the next step was.
I was wheeled into the hospital room and there were my parents, fighting back tears. After I calmed down the nurse asked if I wanted any toast. I requested peanut butter toast (I love pb!). Then I made my parents go get something to eat, because I had to call Matt, my boyfriend of seven months, to tell him that his girlfriend now has cancer and life is going to suck for awhile.
Luckily, he was at lunch between classes at WIT. I know he was with friends at the China Buffet, but I had to tell him my diagnosis. I figured if he was going to bail on the relationship now would be the time. (Luckily he did not and we are still together.)
Within 10 minutes of leaving the room, my parents were back with sandwiches and pop. My brother showed up shortly afterwards, because he was also in class at WIT.
Now for anyone who knows my brother, you know he's a big eater. But, he did not budge from the room and shared my mom's egg salad sandwich.
The nurses informed us that we would wait for Dr. Michalak to come by. He is the head oncologist and the doctor on hospital duty that day. By luck of the draw, I was assigned to Dr. M and he informed me that I would have to have a Power Port put in my chest. After he got all the results back and I completed a PET scan, he would let me know what form of treatment (either chemo or radiation) I would undergo.

What is Hodgkin's Lymphoma?
Hodgkin's disease — also known as Hodgkin's lymphoma — is a cancer of the lymphatic system, which is part of your immune system.
In Hodgkin's disease, cells in the lymphatic system grow abnormally and may spread beyond the lymphatic system. As Hodgkin's disease progresses, it compromises your body's ability to fight infection.
Hodgkin's disease is one of two common types of cancers of the lymphatic system. Non-Hodgkin's lymphoma, the other type, is far more common. Hodgkin's disease is named after the British physician Thomas Hodgkin, who first described the disease in 1832 and noted characteristics that distinguish it from other lymphomas.
Advances in diagnosis, staging and treatment of Hodgkin's disease have helped to make this once uniformly fatal disease highly treatable with the potential for full recovery.