Harvard Study Links Healthy Thymus to Longer Life and Lower Cancer Rates in Nature
Updated
Updated · Al Jazeera English · Jul 24
Harvard Study Links Healthy Thymus to Longer Life and Lower Cancer Rates in Nature
2 articles · Updated · Al Jazeera English · Jul 24
Summary
Harvard Medical School researchers used AI to analyze thousands of CT scans and found adults with healthy-looking thymuses lived longer and had lower rates of cardiovascular disease and cancer.
The March Nature study adds to evidence that the thymus—where T cells mature—remains important beyond childhood even as it shrinks with age and produces fewer new immune cells.
A separate Nature study found thymic health may shape cancer patients’ responses to immunotherapy, while a 2023 study linked thymus removal to a threefold higher death risk and double the cancer risk within five years.
Researchers said the findings are still correlational, not proof that preserving or regenerating the thymus directly extends life, though biotech company Tolerance Bio plans clinical trials next year for an antibody aimed at slowing thymus shrinkage.