Lynette Has Lymphoma -- And It Could Be a Good Thing

Lynette, the Desperate Housewife played by Felicity Huffman, ended the season on a startling note: She was diagnosed with cancer -- specifically, Hodgkin's lymphoma.

Lynette is surely not the only cancer patient whose diagnosis disrupts an already tense marriage -- though she may be one of a select few who gets diagnosed  after she falls out of bed during a rough encounter with her husband. Lynette is also surely not the only cancer patient whose diagnosis brings family tensions out of the woodwork -- in her case, a domineering mother who intends to help her daughter through chemotherapy, whether the daughter wants it or not. How will it all turn out? We'll have to wait till next season.

In the meantime, the plot line on one of TV's most popular shows may do much to raise the profile of Hodgkin's lymphoma. If this happens, it will be an echo of the effect Katie Couric had when, after her husband's death of colorectal cancer, she underwent her own colonoscopy on the Today show. Researchers found an increase in the number of Americans getting colonoscopies after the show ran. It's a testament to the power of storytelling to change people's behavior -- and health -- for the better.

Hodgkin's lymphoma patients have not been content to leave the storytelling to TV producers. Hodgkin's is one of the most curable forms of cancer (good news for Ms. Huffman's chances of continued employment) and many of those who have it have used the Internet to communicate about their disease and treatment.

Some, like Jenny Goellnitz, are in the first few months of dealing with "the Hodge." Since she is a real person and not a TV soap-opera character, cancer disrupted not a tumultuous sex life, but her career as a lawyer and her hobbies of running and Civil War history.

Some, like Sarah from Journey to Babeland, were already bloggers before they became cancer bloggers. The title of her blog reflects its beginnings as a weight-loss journal, before two years of far weightier concerns (including a stem cell transplant) took over.

I've been reading a lot of cancer blogs lately. Some of them are heartbreaking, like Fight 2 Win, whose author Alese Coco fought but did not win her battle against cancer. Others are uplifting, like the bright side, where Ally has stopped posting very often now that she's two years in remission. Each of them is real. So, in her own way, is Lynette Scavo  -- particularly if her story helps inspire people to learn more about cancer, take good care of themselves and reach out to those in need.