`Fighting Spirit` Fights Cancer: Study

July 21, 1985|By United Press International.

NEW YORK — Many doctors are discovering that a ``fighting spirit`` can help overcome cancer, Glamour magazine reported last week.

People who have had bouts of depression and hopelessness generally have weaker immune systems and are less successful in fighting cancer, the article in the magazine`s August issue reported.

But, the article said, those who have a good attitude produce more B-lymphocyte and T-lymphocyte cells.

Psychotherapist and researcher Donna Lou Udelman said in the article that the two forms of lymphocyte cells that are affected by emotions have crucial roles in protecting the body against disease.

She said lab tests show that low levels of the chemicals that stimulate the two kinds of cells are found in depressed people and those who feel hopeless about their ailments.

In some cases, she said, the immune systems of people whose spouses died did not return to normal for a year--a possible physical explanation for the common belief that a surviving spouse has a strong chance of dying within a year after their mate`s death.