Stress reduces the effectiveness of cancer drugs

Cancer patients should urgently avoid any stress
Most people may have already heard that too much stress hurts health. Researchers now found that stress plays a very important role in the treatment of cancer. Reducing stress in cancer therapy is very important because stress hormones can inhibit the response of cancer cells to treatment.

Researchers at the University of Brighton found in their study that stress hormones can reduce the success of cancer therapies. The physicians published the results of their study in the journal "Breast Cancer Research".

Patients with breast cancer should avoid stress. Physicians found that stress hormones can reduce the effectiveness of cancer therapies. (Image: StockPhotoPro / fotolia.com)

Stress hormones can make cancer treatments ineffective
Cancer diagnosis is an extremely stressful time for those affected because they hear the bad news about their illness for the first time, say the experts. The problem is that stress hormones can make the treatment ineffective. Due to stress, the cancer cells no longer divide and do not respond to the treatment.

Stress hormones protect growing tumors before treatment
It may sound good that the cancer cells are no longer dividing, but the lack of division is more of a disadvantage for the treatment of cancer. The hormones instead protect the growing tumors from the cancer drugs that are administered to the patient, explain the physicians. In the treatment of cancer so called a stress reduction therapy is necessary to promote the success of the drugs and treatment methods, the experts explain. Thus, the stress hormones can no longer block the action of some chemotherapeutic agents.

Early stress management is important for people with cancer
In their study, the scientists analyzed how chemotherapy drugs responded to stress hormones. Because the diagnosis of breast cancer is a cause of a lot of stress. This alone is an important reason for early stress management, explains the author. Melanie Flint. The increase in stress hormones, or perhaps related changes in the receptors, could also affect treatment by chemotherapy, adds the expert. Every patient with a newly diagnosed cancer should be aware of the stress involved and should be offered and explained to potential sufferers to reduce stress. Flint.

Many drugs to treat cancer involve dividing cells
Many chemotherapeutic agents specifically affect fast-dividing cells. The research team noted that stress hormones (such as cortisol and norepinephrine) exposed to breast cancer cells create destructive DNA-damaging molecules, also known as free radicals. This causes the cells to temporarily slow down their cell division when DNA repair mechanisms occur. The effect protects the tumors, for example, against the action of the drug paclitaxel, the researchers say.

Yoga and beta-blockers can avoid stress
Another finding of the study was that mice with breast cancer in their tumors produced higher concentrations of a nitric oxide-producing enzyme (iNOS), the researchers explain. Greater iNOS activity has already been linked to the onset of aggressive breast cancer. So it is clear that stress should be avoided in patients with cancer. Medicines for stress hormones, such as beta-blockers, could help cancer patients. In addition, practices such as meditation and yoga can relieve stress, say the experts. (As)