Chronic Lymphocytic Leukemia: Long-term Survivorship

Chronic Lymphocytic Leukemia/
Small Lymphocytic Lymphoma

Long-term Survivorship

Once treatment is completed and CLL/SLL is in remission, physicians will continue to monitor the health and status of each patient during follow-up care. Since CLL/SLL is generally characterized by multiple disease relapses after responses to a variety of treatments, patients in remission should have regular visits with a physician who is familiar with their medical history and the treatments they have received. Medical tests (such as blood tests and computed tomography [CT] scans) may be required at various times during remission to evaluate the need for additional treatment.

Some treatments can cause long-term effects or late effects, which can vary based on duration and frequency of treatments, age, gender, and the overall health of each patient at the time of treatment. A physician will check for these effects during follow-up care.

Patients and their caregivers are encouraged to keep copies of all medical records and test results as well as information on the types, amounts, and duration of all treatments received. This documentation will be important for keeping track of any effects resulting from treatment or potential disease recurrences.

Learn More

To learn more about long-term survivorship, download the Lymphoma Survivorship Fact Sheet Series. Want to talk to someone? For answers to lymphoma-related questions 
and resources, contact our Helpline at (800) 500-9976 or helpline@lymphoma.org.

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Additional Resources

To learn more about CLL/SLL, download the Chronic Lymphocytic Leukemia/ Small Lymphocytic Lymphoma Fact Sheet.

Events

Lymphoma Talk: Los Angeles

Westdrift Manhattan Beach 1400 Parkview Avenue, Manhattan Beach, California

Lymphoma Talk is a two-hour weekday evening in-person program led by lymphoma experts that provides […]

2025 Educational Forum on Lymphoma

Virtual

The Educational Forum on Lymphoma is a virtual two-day conference in the fall of every year that […]