3. Tumors

3. Tumors

In recent years, research on malignant tumors has suggested that dysregulation of the body's immune function is one of the major causes of this disease. The immune surveillance system, primarily dependent on thymus-derived T cells, normally prevents cellular mutations and thus inhibits the occurrence and progression of malignant tumors. Therefore, insufficient T cell function and weakened immune surveillance are major factors in tumor formation. Traditional Chinese Medicine holds that the key to the onset of this disease is "deficiency of vital energy." As stated in "Yizong Bidu": "When accumulation forms, it is due to insufficient vital energy, allowing pathogenic factors to take hold." During the Yuan and Ming dynasties, scholars such as Zhang Yuansu, Li Dongyuan, and Luo Tianyi all made similar arguments about how "nourishing vital energy naturally eliminates accumulation." In recent years, the use of methods to bolster vital energy in treating tumors has yielded increasingly remarkable results. Longhua Hospital affiliated with Shanghai University of Traditional Chinese Medicine primarily employed spleen-strengthening and qi-nourishing therapies, supplemented by kidney-tonifying treatments, to treat a patient with advanced liver cancer. After two months of ineffective Western chemotherapy, the patient was given traditional Chinese medicine, resulting in improved appetite, increased mental vitality, and greater urine output. Three months later, the ascites had resolved, and the patient was discharged. Another case involved treating advanced breast cancer with warming kidney and invigorating yang therapies, supplemented by spleen-strengthening and qi-nourishing treatments. After various chemotherapies proved ineffective, the patient switched to traditional Chinese medicine aimed at promoting blood circulation, resolving stasis, reducing swelling, and dispersing nodules. Although there was some minor effect, six months later the condition worsened, and after syndrome differentiation it was determined that the patient had developed both spleen and kidney deficiency. Consequently, the treatment was adjusted to include warming kidney and invigorating yang combined with spleen-strengthening and qi-nourishing therapies, and four months later the tumor had disappeared. Beijing Hospital of Traditional Chinese Medicine’s oncology department treated a patient who experienced postoperative recurrence of spinal cord tumor. The patient suffered from lower limb paralysis and bowel/bladder dysfunction. After taking 24 doses of Di Huang Yin Zi and Cong Rong Wan with added ingredients, the patient was able to get out of bed and walk while holding onto the wall. Subsequently, the original formula was continued, with the addition of 50 grams of Nüzhenzi, along with Huaniu Wan—a formulation known for its qi-nourishing and pathogen-clearing properties. One month later, the patient could walk a kilometer with a cane and walk 50 meters without it. After another two months of taking the same formula, the patient independently attended outpatient follow-up visits, no longer needing a cane, with stable gait and controlled bowel/bladder functions. Further adjustments were made, adding 50 grams each of Gusuibu and Luoshiteng, taken every other day or every three days, and four months later the patient’s physical strength had fully recovered, enabling free walking and squatting, and the patient resumed work. The Institute of Traditional Chinese Medicine used Liu Wei Di Huang Wan, a kidney-tonifying formula, to treat 30 cases of severe esophageal epithelial hyperplasia, achieving an improvement rate of 86.7% after one year of medication. To explore the relationship between "deficiency syndromes" and the body's immune function, Longhua Hospital affiliated with Shanghai University of Traditional Chinese Medicine conducted experiments on macrophage phagocytic activity, lymphocyte transformation tests, and rose flower ring tests among some lung cancer patients. The results showed that all three immune indicators in lung cancer patients were significantly lower than those in healthy individuals. However, after syndrome-differentiated treatment using formulas that reinforce vital energy, strengthen the spleen and nourish qi, and tonify the kidneys, all indicators increased. Comparing pre- and post-treatment test results, all differences were statistically significant (P<0.01), indicating that reinforcing vital energy has a regulatory effect on both specific and non-specific immunity in lung cancer patients.