Hello everyone,

I am a 57 year old female. I had mononucleosis from EBV when I was in high school, over 40 years ago. It was a severe case, but I was not hospitalized, back then they just had me sweat it out. I had a very high fever for several days and was put in our bathtub to lower my fever. Prior to Mono I had a photographic memory, Mono changed that and for the first time in my life I had to learn how to study. I still have memory issues to this day.

I have never had Covid, as I have been masking religiously, not dining indoors, and pretty much isolating for close to 4 years. (I have an autoimmune disease that causes me to have a hypercoagulable state - prone to blood clots). Plus I already believed my health issues stemmed from EBV and know that viruses can cause autoimmune and cancer, and I do not want to risk developing more health issues.

Right around perimenopause I started having issues. Bilateral joint pain, fatigue, weight gain, restless leg, hair loss, bilateral carpel tunnel like pain.... etc.

In 2018 I finally saw a rheumatologist. I tested negative for Lyme, lead, and mercury. My Vitamin D was low. I tested positive for autoantibodies (ANA). I then tested triple positive for antiphospholipid syndrome (APS) with symptoms of undifferentiated connective tissue disease (UCTD is like a catch all diagnosis where I don't fulfill the criteria for any other autoimmune diseases.)

The Mayo Clinic started me on Plaquenil (hydroxychloroquine and after 3 months I felt amazing. I continue to take Plaquenil and my autoimmune is in remission / is asymptomatic. Before Plaquenil I had difficulty climbing the stairs (weakness and pain), I had profound fatigue and just felt bad. Plaquenil has been a miracle for me.

I had very strong reactions to all 3 Moderna vaccines. My symptoms ran the gamut. I had a high heart rate, nausea, insomnia, body aches, fever, bizarre cartilage pains, jaw pain, thirst, muscle twitches and internal tremors. In 2021 I went to see an infectious disease doctor who ordered EBV, CMV, and HIV, Toxoplasma and Hepatitis testing. Everything was negative with the exception of one Lyme band, Cytomegalovirus (CMV) and EBV.

OF NOTE: The EBV range at Quest is >150, the EBV range at Labcorp is >600. Anyone else use two different labs?

My results in 2021 (Quest):

41 KD IGG Band (Lyme) - reactive (the infectious disease doctor said this was inconsequential).
CMV IGG >10 high
CMV IGM negative
CMV DNA QN PCR - negative
EBV Early Antigen D AB IGG >150 high
EBV DNA QN PCR - negative

Then in 2023 I had my EBV tested again (Quest). The results:
EBV Early Antigen D AB IGG >150 high

Then in 2024 I had my EBV tested again (Labcorp). The results:
EBV VCA IGM - negative
EBV VCA IGG >600 high
EBV Nuclear AG IGG >600 high

I was seeking answers on why the Moderna vaccines made me so ill. In 2021 I went to my rheumatologist at the Mayo Clinic who was at a loss and believes I may have had a retro virus reactivated or they affected my vagus nerve. My symptoms ultimately subsided. However, I did have a persistent lymph node in my right armpit after the second vaccine. Then another in my left armpit. Then after my third dose I had a lymph node appear in my groin. My intuition told me I had lymphoma. I went to see an oncologist who wanted me to wait another 6 months to see if the lymph nodes would subside. I had been told to catch cancer early in order to get the best chance of survival so I pushed my GP to order the biopsy.

I was diagnosed with follicular non Hodgkin's lymphoma and am on "Watch and Wait" as the cancer is currently less of a risk to me than the chemo or treatment would be.

All the while the high EBV titer has been nagging me. Is the EBV antibody level contributing to my cancer and autoimmune? WHY is my titer so high? Do I have a subclinical chronic EBV infection?

I hope some day we all get answers.