Guest Article: Can Staying Positive Stop Cancer?

Guest Article

I'm so pleased and honored to be able to share this article, written by Trevor Bradshaw,with you all.  Trevor is a public health advocate dedicated to fighting cancer.  He is a recent graduate of the University of Central Florida and an aspiring writer. For more articles and information about his work, feel free to email him at trevorsendeavors@gmail.com.

Can Staying Positive Stop Cancer?

Oftentimes one of the first things that a cancer patient might hear after diagnosis is “Just stay positive.” But could staying positive actually become medical advice someday soon? It’s possible.  Scientists studying the new field of physchoneuroimmunology have been exploring the interactions between the nervous and immune systems of the body, including exactly what power positive thinking can have on fighting cancer.

Although an exact link between positivity and increased survival rates has yet to be uncovered, recent studies have shown a cancer mortality rate 19% higher for pessimists than optimists. Optimists have even been shown to have an increased life expectancy in cancers that are thought to be based primarily on environmental factors such as lung cancer and peritoneal mesothelioma

It’s possible however that it’s not necessarily the power of positive thinking that accounts for the gap in life expectancy and mortality rates- it might be simply that too much of the wrong kind of negative thinking can be dangerous.  New research has recently proven that there is a direct correlation between too much stress and tumor growth.  In particular norepinephrine, a chemical that is released in heavy amounts during stressful situations, has come under scrutiny as it has been shown to increase cancerous tumor cell growth in mice and is thought to play a role in ovarian cancer in humans as well.

While we are still quite far away from doctor’s prescribing you to stay positive as a cancer drug, it should come as no surprise that doctors are more and more adamant that cancer patients attend support groups.  Because support groups are an outlet for patients or survivors to discuss their emotions and reactions with others who have been through similar experiences they often decrease the dangerous levels of stress that come with cancer. Furthermore cancer support groups often help patients to forge long-lasting relationships in a like-minded community and can have a strong positive affect on a cancer patient or survivors’ outlook. In the end, while it’s clear we don’t know enough to say for sure that staying positive can actively help patients beat cancer maybe that old advice “Just stay positive” has something to it after all.

For more articles and information about Trevor's work, please email him at: trevorsendeavors@gmail.com.