Fever and cancer in perspective.

CONTEXT: A relationship between feverish infection and concurrent remission from cancer has been known about for a very long time. However, a systematic investigation of the phenomenon has not yet been made.

OBJECTIVE

To bring together the isolated observations about the coincidence of spontaneous remissions with feverish infections and William Coley's seminal work, as a basis for devising an immunological hypothesis about the putative anti-cancer effect of fever.

CONCLUSION

Fever induction under medical guidance may be considered as part of a therapy regimen for cancers of mesodermal origin.