The interesting explanation has to do with immune function and may highlight one blessing of this difficult respiratory illness that affects almost 30 million Americans.
New Research: Having This Chronic Condition May Actually Help Prevent Breast Cancer
Published on Jan. 11, 2025
If you have asthma, it can feel like there’s nothing good about it. Next comes a big however: Fascinatingly, a study has just reinforced previous evidence that asthma might show some power in fighting breast cancer—which, according to the American Cancer Society (ACS), accounts for one in every three new cancers diagnosed in women each year, making it the most common cancer type for females.
One study, published December 2024 in the esteemed journal Cancer Medicine, recently came to a surprising conclusion when it found that women living with asthma might be at lower risk of breast cancer. The researchers suggest that having asthma—a condition diagnosed in 9.7% of women and an estimated 28 million Americans, according to national data—could show a protective effect against the disease.
To better understand the link between asthma and breast cancer, the researchers analyzed medical data reported starting in the 1970s from 202,055 female nurses who agreed to contribute their personal health details to research on women’s health. Among the study participants were 18,403 women living with physician-diagnosed asthma, 11,096 of whom were ultimately also diagnosed with breast cancer.
“In these longitudinal studies, women with asthma had a somewhat lower risk of breast cancer,” the researchers report, noting that the effect was most pronounced among women who had never smoked.
What’s the explanation? “An active immune system may provide protection from breast cancer,” the researchers observe. Meaning: Because breathing is such an essential physiological function, the bodies of asthma sufferers are continually on guard to fend off immune system invaders. An individual with a genetic predisposition to allergy conditions is more likely to have an immune system that “recognizes and destroys toxins and foreign particles,” the team postulates. This “hyperactive immune system,” they add, “is similarly able to effectively detect and eradicate autogenic, premalignant cells before tumors develop.” The scientists add that this process could effectively “clear the body of pre-malignant cells.”
The researchers say that previous studies that have tied genetic allergies to breast cancer have focused on their uses in treatment rather than prevention. However, the new study could provide “new avenues for the understanding of breast cancer mechanisms and may translate into improved opportunities for breast cancer prevention.” In fact, the researchers say there’s an entire field called “allegro oncology” that aims to define allergy-associated biomarkers for cancer, and to develop new therapeutic interventions using those associations.
So while there’s nothing fun about suffering a respiratory condition, this could be one advantage not to sneeze at. And unfortunately, while there’s no way to guarantee the prevention of cancer, this study may be a reminder that taking care of your immune system with a nutritious diet, exercise, sufficient sleep, and healthy stress management could help you stay healthy in ways big and small.
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