The Beautiful Cure

A leading expert explains how discoveries about the immune system are leading the way to a revolution in beating cancer and other diseases. The immune system holds the key to human health. The scientific quest to understand how it works--and how it is affected by stress, diet, sleep, age, exercise and our state of mind--is now unlocking a revolutionary new approach to medicine and well-being. The body's ability to fight disease and heal itself is one of the great mysteries and marvels of nature, but within the last few years, painstaking research has resulted in major advances in our understanding of the immune system, revealing an inner world of breathtaking sophistication, complexity and beauty. Far more powerful than any medicine ever invented, it also plays a crucial role in our daily lives. Already we have found ways to harness these natural defences to create break-through drugs and therapies that can beat cancer, diabetes, arthritis and many age-related diseases, and we are starting to understand how activities such as mindfulness might play a role in enhancing our physical resilience. Written by an expert at the forefront of this adventure, The Beautiful Cure tells a dramatic story of detective work and discovery, of puzzles solved and of the mysteries that remain, of lives sacrificed and saved, introducing the reader to this revelatory new understanding of the human body and what it takes to be healthy.