Exercise can activate anti-cancer pioneer NK cells
Exercise reduces cancer risk
1. Exercise reduces cancer risk
Researchers at the University of Vermont in the United States have studied more than 17,000 men in the past 20 years. The results found that men who exercise regularly are 68% less likely to develop lung cancer and 38% less likely to develop rectal cancer than men who do not exercise regularly. Men who already had lung cancer, rectal cancer, or prostate cancer had a 14% reduction in the rate of cancer progression.
2. NK cells are the vanguard of the elimination of cancer cells
In 1970, scientists discovered that certain cells of the lymphocyte system can destroy tumor cells without antigen sensitization. Such cells are then called natural killer cells, or NK for short.
The immune system has two immune armies, the innate immune system and the acquired immune system. The innate immune system is one of the people. The innate immune system is also the body's first defense mechanism.
NK cells, which account for 5% to 15% of the total lymphocyte circulation, are the most active fighters in the immune system and are known as the core cells of natural immunity.
As a frontier sentinel, NK cells tirelessly go to different places with the blood of human beings. See if there are "enemies", such as various viruses, foreign bacteria, senescent and apoptotic cells produced in the body, and mutated tumor cells.
NK cells have a broad-spectrum anti-tumor effect. Compared with other anti-tumor immune cells, NK cells have the shortest activation time and the most killing methods.
NK cells only need to receive some molecular changes of cancer cells, and they will immediately go into battle.
After NK cells find hostile situations, they will be the first to rush forward and quickly kill diseased and cancerous cells.
At the same time, as a sentry, it can quickly report the enemy's situation and activate the immune defense and immune killing function of the entire immune system.
3. NK cells can avoid cancer
The researchers observed that in different models, the proportion of NK cells in the exercise group was higher than that of the non-exercise control group.
The researchers concluded that even if they are implanted or injected with high-risk carcinogens, they can still avoid the occurrence of malignant tumors through exercise.
4. Exercise guides NK cells to attack tumors
According to the test, the immune system activity of the exercise mice is much higher than that of the non-exercise group.
At the same time, the researchers noticed that the mice that have developed tumors persisted in exercise, and did not increase the frequency of NK cells in the bone marrow, spleen, and peripheral blood. On the contrary, the frequency of their appearance in tumors increased.
After analysis, the researchers believe that the role of exercise in this is to provide an environment that facilitates the smoothness of the entire pathway, that is, exercise allows NK cells to enter the tumor faster and more efficiently to kill tumor cells. !
5. Cancer patients’ NK cells have been severely damaged
So, why would anyone still get cancer?
The medical profession has discovered that it takes 5-20 years for an individual to become cancerous in the body from exposure to risk factors. During this period, NK cells and the cancer cells in the body are "changing and growing", constantly "gaming" and confronting each other.
In the process of fighting tumors, the activity, lethality and number of NK cells will be affected by the condition and continue to decline.
Therefore, the NK cells of patients with advanced cancer have often been severely damaged and cannot eliminate tumor cells. This is one of the reasons for cancer recurrence and metastasis.
In fact, NK cells have already been used for tumor immunotherapy!
6. Middle-aged and elderly people must be more aware of sports
Under normal physiological conditions, starting from the age of 20, the vitality and efficacy of NK cells in the body will gradually decrease with age, and will decline sharply after the age of 60.
Therefore, in the statistics of the probability of cancer in different age groups, the gradual increase in the probability starts from about 60 years old!
Therefore, middle-aged and elderly people must be more aware of exercise.
Studies have found that after exercising for 30 to 45 minutes a day, 5 days a week, for 12 weeks, the number of immune cells will increase and the resistance will relatively increase. A walk after dinner is good.
Cancer patients must exercise moderately. What kind of exercise is appropriate depends on the doctor in charge.
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