Many people wonder if their stressful lifestyle led to their cancer diagnosis. Although stress can contribute to a number of health problems, the evidence that it can cause cancer is weak. However Dr. Heather Yeo, a colorectal surgeon and surgical oncologist at NewYork-Presbyterian/Weill Cornell, says stress can decrease your body’s ability to fight certain cancers.
What’s more, Dr. Yeo says there are some studies which show stress could worsen healing and recovery from surgery as well as affect the risk of recurrence. “We know that when your immune system is down when there’s an excess of stress hormones going on,” explains Dr Yeo, “your body has a hard time recovering and cancer takes advantage of that.”
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Dr. Heather Yeo is a medical advisor to SurvivorNet. She is board-certified in general surgery, colon and rectal surgery, and complex general surgical oncology. She is an assistant professor of Surgery and Healthcare Policy and Research at Weill Cornell Medical College and assistant attending surgeon at NewYork-Presbyterian/Weill Cornell Medical Center. Read More