Does stress cause cancer?
Mitch Golant, Ph.D.: There is no data that indicates stress causes cancer. The way we are thinking about the relationship between stress and any function is the following. The way to think about this is that cancer cells exist in our bodies all the time. Our immune system is fighting off those cancer cells time and time again. What we are looking at is if you can enhance the power of the immune system by doing things that make you happy. We talk about the three most significant stressors, namely, unwanted aloneness, loss of control, and loss of hope. If you can address those three stressors, you can enhance the power of the immune system, which may have an effect on how it’s able to fight those cancer cells.
