Loneliness and Cancer: Recent Study Reveals the Connection

“An isolated individual can become easily overwhelmed by the challenges of everyday life,” explained Dr. Stewart Wolf [then head of Medicine at the University of Oklahoma] in one of the study reports. “This kind of overwhelm can trigger stress responses in the body. (The stress response) in individuals surrounded by a supportive community relaxes. This kind of relaxation translates into positive effects on the body’s physiology, leading to disease prevention and sometimes disease remission.”


Either way you look at it, you can draw the same conclusion: loneliness creates disease while feelings of being supported and cared for can help to shed the stress response and lead to vibrant health.


Cancer prevention and healing must be nurtured on all levels, and that includes at the level of our feelings. If you are feeling lonely, don’t just push it under the rug. Contact a counsellor, reach out to a friend, join a support group in your area, or even consider bringing a dog or cat into your home. Not only will you feel better emotionally, you will be giving your body the amazing gift of healing as well!