Fever therapy is a procedure by which the patient’s body actively produces a fever. This is done by introducing pyrogenic substances (substances that cause fever) iatrogenically (performed by a physician) into the body. The procedure is also referred to as active hyperthermia and contrasts with passive hyperthermia, which causes an increase in body temperature through the external use of equipment. The primary goals of fever therapy are the stimulation of the immune system and a vegetative retuning of the organism. Today, this therapy is mainly used in complementary cancer therapy.
Indications (areas of application)
- Oncological diseases (tumor diseases) of any kind.
- Chronic inflammation in the genital area
- Chronic courses of gynecological diseases
- Diseases of the rheumatic form circle – e.g. chronic polyarthritis (chronic inflammation of joints).
- Collagenoses (group of connective tissue diseases caused by autoimmune processes) – systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE), polymyositis (PM) or dermatomyositis (DM), Sjögren’s syndrome (Sj), scleroderma (SSc) and Sharp syndrome (“mixed connective tissue disease”, MCTD).
- Chronic inflammatory bowel disease – e.g. Crohn’s disease or ulcerative colitis.
- Chronic bronchitis
- Chronic or recurrent (recurrent) abscesses – boils in a closed tissue space.
- Pyoderma – infection of the superficial or deep layers of the skin and skin appendages (hair, nails, sweat glands) with pus rashes.
- Allergic diseases such as chronic urticaria (hives).
Contraindications
- Acute leukemia (blood cancer)
- Acute inflammation
- Severe limitation of the cardiovascular system
- Pregnancy
The procedure
A fever reaction is a holistic process, which is actively produced by the organism itself. It primarily serves to improve the immune response, as the overall metabolic activity and the activity of many immune cells (granulocytes, macrophages, lymphocytes) increases in an elevated temperature range. Mild fever is present from a temperature above 37 °C, true fever from 38-41 °C. Both under normal circumstances and during fever therapy, so-called pyrogens (fever-producing substances) are the triggers of the rise in temperature. Such substances are, for example, components of bacteria and viruses, but also plant components or non-biological substances. As a reaction to foreign substances, the organism starts an inflammatory reaction, the fever. In tumor therapy, the following effects have been observed:
- Direct tumor necrosis (death of the tumor) by exposure to heat.
- Pain reduction
- Nutrient and oxygen depletion of the tumor tissue, due to improved blood flow to healthy tissue.
- Breakthrough of chemo- and radiation resistance – the tumor is better fought by the therapy.
- Increasing the effect of some chemotherapeutic agents (drugs of chemotherapy) without an increase in side effects.
- Increase in the quality of life
Important prerequisites for successful fever therapy are a good, adequate vitality and a stable circulatory system. The first fever therapy should take place under stationary conditions to supervise concomitant symptoms or side effects such as fatigue, chills, headache and pain in the limbs, as well as a drop in blood pressure after fever has been removed. The patient should have drunk enough beforehand and be fasting. Treatment is given in a quiet, darkened room. The aim of the treatment is to achieve, during a period of 2 hours, a temperature increase of 2 °C compared to the initial temperature. This can be achieved with the following pyrogens:
- Cytokines – messengers of the immune system, e.g. interferon.
- Nosodes – special homeopathically prepared remedies, e.g. Pyrogenium.
- Fermented mistletoe preparations – e.g. Iscador, which is administered intravenously.
- Homeophatically prepared means – eg Belladonna.
- Bacterial lysates – “defused” bacterial components that do not make you sick, but activate the immune system.
Benefits
Fever therapy is an immunostimulatory procedure that can be effective, especially in chronic diseases.The body’s own self-healing powers are stimulated to enhance the recovery process. The method is mainly used in the context of complementary cancer therapy as a supplement to conventional medicine.
