What Doesn’t Kill You Makes You Stronger

THIS ARTICLE ORIGINALLY APPEARED IN RADIANT LIFE MAGAZINE. ELITE HEALTH

By Jennifer Margulis

Getting sick is unquestionably dangerous for some. But what if infections are actually agents of healing?

That seems to be what happened to a British man who was suffering from swollen lymph nodes and unexplained weight loss. He was diagnosed with Hodgkin lymphoma, a cancer most common in people between the ages of 20 and 40, and those over 55. Then the ailing 61-year-old started wheezing and having difficulty breathing. He tested positive for COVID-19. His case was so severe that he was admitted to the hospital.

The lymphatic system is the part of the immune system that helps fight infections with white blood cells. Think of white blood cells as soldiers, always alert and ready for a fight. They flow through the bloodstream to fight viruses, invasive bacteria, and anything else foreign that could threaten your health. White blood cells are made in bone marrow and stored in the blood and lymph tissues.

When you have cancer in your blood—including leukemia and lymphoma—it develops in the cells in your lymphatic system. Lymphoma is unchecked growth of abnormal white blood cells.

After 11 days in the hospital, the 61-year-old British man was well enough to go home. A follow-up scan for lymphoma uncovered something astonishing. Not only had he made a full recovery from SARS-CoV-2 pneumonia, but there had also been a widespread and unexpected reduction in the cancer in his lymph nodes.

Without any cancer treatment at all, the disease was almost gone. The medical scans tell a visual story: Before he got a bad case of COVID-19, the cancer-affected areas were lit up like a birthday cake. After the severe infection, many of those areas disappeared completely. Others were significantly reduced.

Many common illnesses provide crucial benefits for our immune system. Some can even cure other diseases.

生病對某些人來說確實是件危險的事，但您是否想過， 這些感染源可能是治癒的媒介？ 一名 61 歲的英國男士出現淋巴結腫大症狀，且體 重莫名減輕，隨後他被診斷出霍奇金淋巴癌，這是一 種常見於 20~40 歲以及 55 歲以上人士的癌症。這名 男士，後來因確診新冠肺炎，出現喘息及呼吸困難的症 狀，因症狀嚴重而送醫。

His doctors, who wrote up his case in an article published in January in the peer-reviewed journal Images in Haematology, argue that the severe COVID-19 infection may have had an “anti-tumor” effect.

“There have been many documented cases of people with cancer who have then gotten a viral or bacterial infection and their cancer goes away,” says Laura Orlando, who’s been teaching classes on environmental health for almost 20 years and was not involved in the study.

“The presumption is that the immune system gets revved up in a manner that addresses the cancer,” says Orlando, an adjunct professor at Boston University’s School of Public Health as well as the executive director of the Boston-based Resource Institute for Low Entropy Systems, a nonprofit that works at the intersection of human health and the environment.

BENEFITS OF VIRAL INFECTIONS At first glance, it would seem almost impossible for there to be any benefit in getting COVID-19. Especially terrifying to many is the idea of becoming a “long-hauler.” “Long COVID” refers to people who continue to feel sick for months after any measurable sign of the infection is gone. Long-haulers test negative but don’t feel well.

Anthony Komaroff, M.D., editor of the Harvard Health Letter, estimates that tens of thousands of people are suffering from long COVID. A recent study in Nature confirms that COVID-19 long-haulers are at increased risk of death and other poorhealth outcomes (including lung problems, heart issues, gastrointestinal upset, anxiety, and fatigue) compared to people who never had COVID-19.

How is it possible that having COVID-19 may have the unexpected benefit of waking up the immune system to fight back against cancer?

Evidence in the scientific literature shows that there can be myriad unexpected benefits to getting sick. We’ve known since 1966 that women who’ve had mumps in childhood have much less risk of developing reproductive cancer later in life. In fact, at least eight studies have found that getting mumps is protective against ovarian cancer. One theory for why this is so is that an acute inflammatory event, like mumps, prompts the body to create antibodies that can later recognize and clear cancer cells.

淋巴系統是免疫系統的其中一環，透過白血球打擊 感染源。白血球生長於骨髓，儲存於血液以及淋巴組織 中。我們將白血球視為戰士，它們時刻警覺且處於備戰 狀態，透過血液循環系統前往感染處，對抗病毒、具侵 略性的細菌，以及抵禦所有來自體外的威脅。當您血液 中有癌細胞（包含白血病以及淋巴癌），它會在淋巴系 統的細胞內持續生長，而淋巴癌就是病變的白血球不受 控地增生。 這位 61 歲的英國男士在醫院就診 11 天後，復原情 況良好，已可辦理出院。出院前的掃描檢查發現了一項 驚人的事實——他不僅完全擺脫了肺炎症狀，其淋巴結 內的癌細胞也大幅減少。 在沒有接受任何癌症治療的情況下，他卻能有此痊 癒跡象。透過醫學影像，可以看見他確診新冠前，受癌 細胞影響的部位十分顯眼，但在病毒感染後，特定部位 遍布的癌細胞幾乎消失，其他部分都有明顯減少。該臨 床案例的主治醫生，撰文將此病例刊登於去年（2021） 一月的血液影像科的醫學專欄上，旨在探討新冠重症感 染可能具有「抗瘤」效果。 在環境醫學領域從事教學工作有近 20 年經歷的 Laura Orlando 女士表示：「有很多臨床案例顯示，癌 症患者因為病毒感染或細菌感染後，癌症反而因此消 失。」她表明：「這項假設在於免疫系統會受到活化來對 抗癌細胞。」Orlando 女士在波士頓大學公共衛生學系 擔任客座教授，同時也是低熵系統研究機構（Resource Institute for Low Entropy Systems）的執行長，該 非營利組織長期致力於研究環境與人體健康影響。

感染病毒，焉知非福？ 乍看之下，染上新冠肺炎一點好處也沒有，過去這段時 間，我們因此陷入恐慌，尤其是面對令人唯恐避之不及 的新冠後遺症（長期症狀），也就是在染疫後數月，儘 管檢測顯示已呈陰性，但卻長期處於相關病徵狀態下。 《Harvard Health Letter》編輯Anthony Komaroff 醫學博士預估，有數以萬計的人們患有長期症狀，近期 一項刊登於《自然》科學期刊的研究證實，這一類人死 亡風險增高還有伴隨眾多不良後遺症（如肺病、心臟疾 病、腸胃問題、焦慮與疲勞等問題）。既如此，患病何以 能夠帶來「好處」？ 過去有許多科學文獻指出，生病會帶來許多意想不 到的益處。舉例來說，1966 年起，那些曾在幼年時期 患過腮腺炎的女性，在晚年患上卵巢癌的機率明顯低於 一般未患病女性。一項理論解釋這背後的原因在於，腮 腺炎引起的急性發炎反應導致身體產生抗體，讓身體免 疫系統能夠盡早認出早期生成的癌細胞，杜絕後患。 根據 2015 年日本發表的一項研究報告顯示，幼 年時患上麻疹與腮腺炎的人，死於心血管疾病的比例較 低。這項報告調查的數據來自十萬名 40~79 歲的男性

ILLUSTRATION BY LINDA ZHAO

While many drugs promise relief from the symptoms of illness, those symptoms are often our immune system at work.

According to a Japanese study published in 2015, measles and mumps infections in childhood reduce the risk of death from cardiovascular disease. Surveying more than 100,000 men and women ages 40 to 79, researchers from Osaka University found that getting measles or mumps was associated with a decreased risk of death from heart disease. People who had both illnesses in childhood had the lowest risk.

“Homeopaths have long argued for childhood illnesses to be left alone because they have beneficial effects,” says Annette Fang, who has a doctorate in analytical chemistry. Fang studied homeopathy for three years and uses remedies to help her children and husband (also a chemist) when they get sick. “In the end, these diseases—even the common cold—are detox reactions,” Fang says. “In homeopathy, we call a cold ‘the drain of the brain.’ It’s good for the brain and your whole system.”

BENEFITS OF FEVER Fever is a common symptom of illnesses like mumps, measles, and SARS-CoV-2. Most people normally

與女性。大阪大學的研究員發現，麻疹與腮腺炎本身都 能有效地降低心血管疾病，換言之，曾在幼年患有上述 兩種病症者，而後出現心血管疾病的風險最低。 分析化學博士 Annette Fang 指出：「順勢療法一 直主張對兒科疾病隨其發展，因為這些疾病有一定益 處。」方博士研究順勢療法已有三年，在她的孩子和丈夫 （同為化學家）生病時，給他們開過藥方。方博士表示： 「歸根結底，所有疾病都是身體的排毒反應，包括最常 見的感冒。順勢療法將感冒稱作『大腦排水』，對大腦 和整個身體都有好處。」

人體天然防線——發燒的好處 發燒是患上麻疹、腮腺炎，或新冠病毒者最常見的病徵 之一。多數人的正常體溫處在華氏 97~99 度之間（約攝 氏 36~37 度），超過華氏 100.4 度（攝氏 38 度）時， 就視為發燒反應。筆者最年幼的女兒發燒時還老神在 在，在全身發熱時，還會吵著要老爸帶她去公園玩滑板。 對多數人而言，發燒時的感覺很糟，輕度發燒不會給身 體帶來太大的不適感，但是重度發燒時，通常會伴隨著 全身痠痛與嗜睡症狀。 其實，並非只有人類會在生病時發燒，魚類、兩棲 類、哺乳類也會發燒。研究顯示，無論是對動物或人類，

Some childhood viruses may be preparing our bodies to resist worse diseases later in life.

have a body temperature between 97 and 99 degrees, so anything higher than 100.4 is considered a fever. My youngest daughter maintains a chipper attitude even when she has a fever, even asking her dad to take her to the skate park one afternoon even though she was burning up. For most, a fever feels awful. A low-grade fever may not make you feel very sick, but a higher fever is often accompanied by whole-body aches and lethargy. When you or a loved one is burning with fever, it’s hard to imagine there’s anything beneficial about it. But it’s not just humans that experience fevers when they’re sick. Fish, reptiles, and mammals (rabbits and dogs, for example) get fevers as well.

Studies of both animals and humans have found that fever has beneficial effects. In a 2019 study, a team of Chinese scientists found that fever helped strengthen the immune system. Fever appeared to boost two specific molecules: alpha-4 integrin and heat-shock protein 90. These molecules help white blood cells get from blood vessels into the lymph nodes where they can team up with other immune cells to attack infections.

Scientists have found that when we reduce fevers, infections get worse. Children with sepsis are more likely to die if their temperatures are lower. According

發燒都會帶來益處。 2019 年，有一項報告指出，一個 中國科學團隊發現，發燒能增強人們的免疫系統。發燒 時會活化兩種特定分子：分別為α4 整合素以及熱休克 蛋白 90（Hsp90），這些分子會幫助白血球從血管進入 淋巴結內，讓白血球和其他的免疫細胞合作在同一地點 對抗感染源。 科學家已發現，當我們退燒時，體內的感染反應加 劇。患有白血症的孩童可能會因為體溫較低而出現生命 危險，根據醫學博士 Paul Offit 在《The Daily Beast》 撰文指出，透過退燒藥來降溫，反而會延長流感、感冒 以及水痘等病症的持續期。 發燒除了對個體有幫助，對群體而言，其實也是一 種自然的防禦機制。因為當我們發燒時，我們自然不想 與他人接觸，會想多休息，這種自我隔離意識，是發燒 帶給我們的訊號，不僅有助於我們自我修復，也會讓我 們自然地遠離他人，避免他人感染。

病毒若不致命 還有正面效應 關於新冠肺炎病毒或其他病毒等，我們普遍還有一項疑 問在於，有些人會出現嚴重症狀，有些人卻只有輕微病 徵並能迅速復原，或甚至毫無症狀。我們希望自身的免 疫系統能被喚醒，抵禦這些外來攻擊，同時我們也不希 望免疫系統過度反應，如出現「免疫風暴」（Cytokine Storm，細胞激素風暴），以致於傷害到本體。 其實我們不需要格外的懼怕某一種特定的病毒或 疾病，問題在於因為病毒感染後而出現的重症狀態。醫 學博士 Martha Herbert 表示：「面對挑戰時，我們具 備什麼樣的復原力，才是最要緊的。」

Becoming ill is not the problem, the concern is suffering longlasting health problems or dying from infection.

PHOTOS BY SHUTTERSTOCK

to Paul Offit, M.D., writing in The Daily Beast, reducing fever via anti-pyretic medication has also been found to prolong symptoms of influenza, the common cold, and chickenpox.

Beyond helping the individual who’s feeling sick, fever may also be nature’s way of protecting the herd. When most of us have a fever, we don’t want to be around others. We want to be in bed, resting or sleeping. This self-imposed isolation, courtesy of the fever, not only helps us heal, but it also keeps us away from other people, which helps them avoid getting sick.

IF IT DOESN'T KILL YOU ... One of the questions we haven’t been asking is why some people get so sick from COVID-19 (or any other viral illness) but others remain asymptomatic or have mild symptoms that quickly resolve. We want our immune system to be awake, and our bodies to fight off what's harmful, but we don’t want our immune system to overreact and harm us, as happens during a cytokine storm. We also don’t want to attack our own cells and tissues, as an over-active immune system with nothing to fight against creates autoimmune diseases.

It’s not this virus in particular, or illness in general, that we need to fear. The problem comes when we have a severe reaction to the virus. “How resilient you are in the face of challenges is what matters most,” says Martha Herbert, Ph.D., M.D.

Herbert, 69, retired recently from Harvard Medical School, where she was on the faculty of the Department of Neurology for 20 years. “Our bodies are capable of handling a whole range of challenges, and we have the power to upgrade how well we handle them, but people aren’t taught that,” she says.

In other words, getting sick isn’t the problem. The real concern is suffering long-lasting health problems or dying from infection.

“Being sick is usually showing you something isn’t tuned properly, either in your lifestyle or in your environment,” Herbert says. She argues that illness can be a transformative experience, one that helps you get out of your ruts. “It should alert you to go into Sherlock Holmes mode of what you should improve, not in a scared or fanatical way, but in an informed way.”

So what information do you need for your body to be resilient to infections, toxic exposures, and catastrophic diseases like cancer? Herbert says we build resilience by eating nutrient-dense food, reducing our stress levels, exercising, and taking better care of ourselves. Regenerating soil that’s been depleted of nutrients because of industrial farming practices is important too. Herbert says that by eating well and avoiding toxic exposures (which include stress), we help our bodies marshal the biological resources that allow us to heal.

We want our immune systems to be awake, and our bodies to fight off what’s harmful, but we don’t want our immune system to overreact and harm us.

69 歲的 Herbert 博士前陣子從哈佛醫學院退休， 她在神經學部門就職長達 20 年，她說：「我們人體具 備面對各種挑戰的能耐，也有能力來提升應變力，但是 人們卻未被告知這件事。」也就是說，生病本身並非是 個問題，關鍵在於長期的健康問題，以及因感染而致死。

Herbert 博士說，「生病通常只是展現身體不和諧 的調節狀態，無論是針對你的日常生活狀態或你生活的 環境。」她認為生病是一種改造的機會，會幫助你排除 體內的劣勢，「它（生病）提醒你用『福爾摩斯』的方式 查漏補缺，無需畏首畏尾，也不要陷入偏執，而應隨其 自然。」 所以我們到底需要哪些資訊，來幫助我們具備修復 能力以對抗感染、暴露於有毒環境，又或者是面對像癌 症這般嚴重的病症？ Herbert 博士認為，我們可以透 過攝取高營養食品，減少日常壓力，規律運動等方式來 照護健康。此外，健康土壤的再生工程也尤其重要。只 要人們能吃得好，減少毒素攝入（壓力也是其中一種形 式），都對我們人體復原力大有助益。