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Intl. Journal of Clinical and Experimental Hypnosis, Vol. 55, No. 4, July 2007: pp. 1–27
A REVIEW OF THE EFFECTS OF HYPNOSIS
ON THE IMMUNE SYSTEM IN
BREAST CANCER PATIENTS:
A Brief Communication
Immune systems of breast cancer patients
Kristi D. Hudacek
K
RISTIN
D. H
UDACEK
1,2
University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA
Abstract:
In order to make a recommendation about the use of hyp-
nosis as adjuvant therapy in the treatment of breast cancer, 2 studies
assessing the immunological effects of hypnosis in patients with early
stage breast cancer were evaluated: (a) an experiment that taught
hypnotic guided-imagery therapy to patients and (b) one that pro-
vided participants with home visits and autogenic training. Both
investigations demonstrated improvement in depression and
increased natural killer (NK) cell counts after 2 months of hypnosis
treatment. However, neither study determined the clinical signifi-
cance of hypnosis in the setting of cancer, and therefore future experi-
ments are needed to relate the immune-mediated effects of hypnosis
to hard clinical outcomes like survival rates.
The mind-body connection is a powerful relationship between psy-
chological and somatic functioning that has intrigued humans for cen-
turies. If its energy could be effectively harnessed, patients would be
able to treat themselves in a noninvasive, nonpharmacological, and
inexpensive manner. However, the inner workings of the mind remain
elusive, and for this reason it has been difficult to understand the mech-
anisms by which the brain alters the body. Nonetheless, psychological
interventions have resulted in measurable changes in physiological
functioning, thus providing evidence for the potential of a top-down
approach to medical treatment.
Psychological interventions refer to different types of treatments
that promote emotional and physical well-being through altered
awareness. They include stress-management, relaxation, disclosure,
conditioning, and—the focus of this work—hypnosis (Miller & Cohen,
2001). High and low hypnotizables can be differentiated by measuring
Manuscript submitted May 15, 2006; final revision accepted September 26, 2006.
1
Special thanks are expressed to Peter B. Bloom, MD for his mentorship and encour-
agement of this work.
2
Address correspondence to Kristin D. Hudacek, University of Pennsylvania School
of Medicine, Box 217 Stemmler Hall, Philadelphia, PA 19104-6056, USA.
E-mail: hudacek@mail.med.upenn.edu
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