A survey has found that people with allergy symptoms such as hay fever have a lower risk of developing cancer. Pancreatic cancer is said to be the worst cancer. If you have pancreatic cancer, the 5-year survival rate is about 10%. People with hay fever have a 40% lower risk of developing pancreatic cancer. Research has shown that the risk of pancreatic cancer decreases when you have hay fever. In addition to pancreatic cancer, people with hay fever have a lower risk of developing colon cancer, esophageal cancer, stomach cancer, oral cancer, laryngeal cancer, uterine cancer, brain tumors, and other cancers. It is said that the troublesome hay fever reduces the risk of developing cancer.
Hay fever is caused by an allergic reaction to pollen. An antibody called IgE is produced against pollen and binds to the surface of “mast cells,” a type of immune cell. By the way, IgE is a type of immunoglobulin. This is an antibody that acts against allergens that cause allergies and protects the body. IgE antibodies are usually present in very small amounts in the blood. However, it is said that people with allergies have a large amount of IgE antibodies in their blood. When the same type of pollen enters the body again, the human body causes an “antigen-antibody reaction” with the IgE antibody. When the IgE antibody reacts with the mast cells, chemicals such as histamine are released. These histamines cause symptoms such as sneezing, runny nose, and itchy eyes.
People with hay fever who have an excessive immune reaction also have a strengthened immune surveillance mechanism. This excessive immune reaction causes various symptoms, both good and bad. In a sense, cancer is a disease that can be said to be the aging of cells. As we age, the number of cancer cells that develop every day increases. As we age, scratches accumulate in the genes of the epithelial cells that cover the surface of our organs, making it easier for cancer cells to develop. On the other hand, the immune surveillance mechanism also loses its power with age, so a mechanism is in place that causes cancer to rapidly increase. The immune surveillance mechanism, which detects cancer cells and kills them before they occur, also loses its power with age. However, if hay fever strengthens the immune surveillance mechanism, it will be a blessing. Hay fever, which is inconvenient for many people, works to protect human lives in another aspect.
