STRESS STIMULATES CANCER.

The hypothesis that stress can worsen cancer makes intuitive sense, but has been difficult to demonstrate in the laboratory. Now, there is hard experimental evidence to confirm the idea.

When mice with ovarian cancer were stressed by confinement in a small space, their tumors grew and spread more quickly, according to a study by researchers at the University of Texas M.D. Anderson Cancer Center, and published online on July 23, 2006, in advance of publication in Nature Medicine.

Further, when the researchers blocked stress hormone receptors in the mice using an anti-hypertension drug known as a beta blocker, they were able to stop the accelerating effects of stress on tumor growth.

But, for human beings, one does not need prescription drugs to mitigate the effects of stress. Exercise, meditation, breathwork and a strong support network – including human and animal companions – have been shown to lower stress dramatically. In my view, every treatment plan for cancer should incorporate stress-reduction protocols, not as an afterthought but as a vital part of the treatment plan.


...from Dr. Weil website