What are the causes/mechanisms of spontaneous remission?
A number of mechanisms have been proposed for spontaneous remission of cancer. In the 1970s, a conference at the National Cancer Institute proposed that it was likely immunological factors that provided the primary mechanism of remission. However, although a number of immunotherapy treatments have shown some efficacy in those cancers with an immunological component, there is still no direct one to one correlation between immunological factors and cancer remission in the largest number of cancer types. Since that conference a number of different factors/mechanisms have been proposed for spontaneous remission. Proposed biological and physiological factors/mechanisms: • Immune mediation • Hormonal factors • Inhibition of tumor growth by growth factors and/or cytokines • Differentiation of the tumor into a more “normal” type of tissue • Elimination of carcinogens • Angiogenesis • Tumor necrosis • Programmed cell death (apoptosis) • Genetic factors That psychological and spiritual factors p
