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What Are the Different Types of Immune System Treatment?

Gregory Hanson
Gregory Hanson

An immune system treatment is a medical procedure to limit, boost, or modify the functioning of the human immune system. In some patients, the immune system is overactive or incorrectly identifies the body’s own cells as hostile organisms and must be controlled or re-directed. Other patients have immune systems that have been compromised or weakened, and an immune system treatment may be designed to restore normal functioning. A final category of treatment involves the use of medical technology to modify the immune system and enhance its ability to target or eliminate certain types of cells or viruses.

The immune system is made up of a web of different cells and tissues. White blood cells and the lymphatic system are the most crucial components of this system. When the immune system is functioning properly, it detects foreign materials, bacteria, and viruses, and mobilizes the body’s resources to attack them.

A diagram showing different types of white blood cells, an important part of the immune system.
A diagram showing different types of white blood cells, an important part of the immune system.

Some men and women suffer from conditions in which their bodies are unable to distinguish correctly between outside cells and cells that belong to the body. These disorders, called autoimmune conditions, cause the immune system to turn on the body itself. Some types of immune system treatments are designed to reduce such inappropriate responses in order to limit the damage.

Medical science has been working for years to make the immune system more efficient.
Medical science has been working for years to make the immune system more efficient.

In other individuals, the immune system does not function aggressively enough. In some cases, key elements of the system may have been damaged by disease or other medical conditions. In others, the immune system may never have properly developed. An immune system treatment for this category of patient enhances the functioning of the immune system and supplements a weak system to improve resistance to environmental pathogens.

Lymph vessels are an important part of the immune system.
Lymph vessels are an important part of the immune system.

Medical science has a long history of working to make the immune system more efficient. The process of vaccination works by training the immune system to respond effectively to threats that it has not yet encountered to foster the sort of immunity that a disease survivor typically possesses. This sort of immune system treatment is highly effective and a routine part of Western medicine.

In recent years, experiments have been conducted to encourage the immune system to more effectively attack various threats. Promising work has been done in the area of cancer treatment. The body normally has a limited ability to recognize and attack cancerous cells, but physicians are working to increase this ability in order to make the body better able to resist or defeat cancer.

Discussion Comments

Azuza

@indemnifyme - If you've ever been vaccinated for anything, you have had immune system treatment! And almost everyone in the United States has had some type of vaccination unless your family is against it for religious reasons.

This is why we don't have a lot of diseases like smallpox or polio here in the US anymore. People have immunity because of immune system treatment!

indemnifyme

I find that whenever I get stressed out, I get sick more. I have heard that stress can lower your immune system, so I suppose I shouldn't be surprised by this. However, my immune system isn't bad enough to need targeted medical treatment though.

I have a friend who isn't so lucky! She has the opposite problem of a lowered immune system: she has an auto-immune disorder where her immune system turns against her body.

She has to take oral steroids for this condition, which lower your immune system. This makes her more susceptible to getting infections, which is a whole other problem!

julies

When I begin to feel run down and like I am catching a cold, I immediately begin to take a lot of extra vitamin C. I know my immune system is getting run down, and want to give it a boost.

I do this until the symptoms go away. It seems like if I get started with this right away, it really helps the cold from getting worse. If I wait a few days before taking the vitamin C, it doesn't seem to do as much good.

I also try to make sure I wash my hands often, get plenty of sleep and stay hydrated.

afterall

@panda2006- If you do have an auto immune problem, even all of that together is still not always enough to really feel good.

For a lot of those sorts of problems though, a blood test can see if it's a deficiency or something more serious.

panda2006

I have had people, including doctors, advise about taking vitamins, exercising, and eating vegetables like that is all it takes.

But remember that getting a lot of sleep is really important for not getting sick. So is drinking plenty of liquids.

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    • A diagram showing different types of white blood cells, an important part of the immune system.
      By: apple1
      A diagram showing different types of white blood cells, an important part of the immune system.
    • Medical science has been working for years to make the immune system more efficient.
      By: robyelo357
      Medical science has been working for years to make the immune system more efficient.
    • Lymph vessels are an important part of the immune system.
      By: designua
      Lymph vessels are an important part of the immune system.