Optimism 'no bearing on cancer'

[Sparkster]

Optimism 'no bearing on cancer'

The power of the mind has been overestimated when it comes to fighting cancer, US scientists say.

They said they found that a patient's positive or negative emotional state had no direct bearing on cancer survival or disease progression.

The University of Pennsylvania team followed more than 1,000 patients with head and neck cancer.

But experts said the Cancer journal study should not deter people from adopting a "fighting spirit".

Indeed, a positive outlook can help patients cope with gruelling cancer therapies and resume a "normal" life, a spokeswoman for Macmillan Cancer Support said.

Seeking emotional support may be beneficial to cancer patients, said the researchers.

Lead author Dr James Coyne said: "If cancer patients want psychotherapy or to be in a support group, they should be given the opportunity. There can be lots of emotional and social benefits.

"But they should not seek such experiences solely on the expectation that they are extending their lives.

"The hope that we can fight cancer by influencing emotional states appears to have been misplaced."

'Reassuring' finding

In the study, a patient's emotional status had no bearing on survival, regardless of gender, tumour site or disease stage.

Julia Frater, of Cancer Research UK, said: "People with cancer can feel under pressure to cope well with their disease and treatment and to stay on top of things. They are often urged to feel positive.

"These results should reassure them that if they don't feel like this, it's okay. Many people do feel worried or low following a diagnosis and this isn't likely to affect the outcome of their treatment."

Professor Jane Maher, of Macmillan Cancer Support, said although there was no good evidence that emotion had an impact on the cancer itself, a patient's mental outlook would have a bearing on their long-term outcomes.

"More and more people are surviving with cancer. And that survival will be affected by their emotions.

"For example, depression and anxiety can make it less likely that they are going to get back to a normal, healthy life."

I wonder if this is relevant to all ailments, surely fixating on some health issues are detrimental.

[Hagakure]

i dont think that this would be the case with all illnesses. im pretty sure a positive attitude would help with illnesses where the immune system is more involved. stress and anxiety can result in the immune system not operating at full capacity i think.

but yeah, cancer is a nasty one and it doesn't suprise me that your attitude doesn't affect its development.

bring out the makers of "the secret" now hey.

[Auxin]

Who says the immune system doesnt have much to do with cancer? The immune system destroys most cancers without us even knowing they were there and the immune system is the only thing that wards off metastasis (when a cancer goes wild sprouting up everywhere) The immune system is drastically better than western medicine at treating cancer, it just isnt always enough unfortunately.

Dont overestimate the meaningfulness of this single study, it was only 1000 people, probably all in one state, we dont know what their criteria for optimism was. Many cancer patients mimic optimism cause they think it'll help or to make their family not worry and many people misguidedly judge optimism as a 'fighting spirit' where, essentially the patient is agitated and angry but in the direction you want.

Cultivating calmness, peacefulness, psychic hippie love waves, etc would be better than an agitated 'fighting spirit' and if it helped isnt the only up side, it'd be worth it just to be a wiser more peaceful human being. People that are perfectly healthy should also do it.

[Monk]

My thoughts exactly, Auxin. Positive, unbending intent and "fighting spirit" are not synonymous. In fact, "fighting spirit" brings up connotations in my mind of the 'fight or flight' response which science has shown to have a negative impact on the immune system in the long run. These sound like narrow minded folks looking at a small population and using their intent to cripple the intent of others *sight* There are few things I hate more than pseudoscience promulgated by the media into a black magic that does disservice to large groups of people who think scientists and doctors have the final word on truth

FM

[ajna]

"My thoughts exactly, Auxin"

me three, well said.

the mechanistic view is beginning to subside as science comes to understand that all our systems are closely interlocked. hormones and neuropeptides that facilitate nerve cell communication also communicate with immune cells so effects can happen both ways; sickness contributes to poor emotional state and visa versa. the prob with cancer afaik is that sometimes it can evade the bodies non-self detection system and rapidly multiply undetected

i've always thought that telling someone 'you have x amount of time to live' is basically like delivering a death sentence. i'm really not satisfied with medical science's approach to cancer; the amount of cases i've heard of where a patient has received the death sentence, then taken natural approaches and cured themselves or at least reduced the progression, only to be told by the doc to 'get out of my office' or 'it'll come back so we'll follow through with surgery anyway', is really appalling.

meditation has been proven to enhance the immune system and improve blood flow, both of which would assist in any healing. i'd say it's pretty safe to assume that a healthy mind-state could only be beneficial, and a study like this is a bit tenuous without a more strict definition of positive and negative emotional states