See what the specialists say about the medical uses of thymus

Prof. dr hab. med. Roman Mazur, a neurology specialist, founder of the Department and Clinic of Neurology at the Medical Faculty of Collegium Medicum UMK, member of the American Academy of Neurology (USA), Fellow of the Royal Medical Society (UK), member of the World Federation of Neurology, honorary member of the Polish Neurological Society, founder and honorary chairman of the Polish Stroke Association:

“The use of thymus in medicine has an extremely long history. The Chinese were using it around 3,000 years ago, and since then it’s lost none of its qualities. In Poland, research into this topic began in the 1970s. I took part in it myself from the start, I’ve been working with the thymus for about 40 years, and I was drawn into that research by Prof. Julian Aleksandrowicz from Kraków. During those many years of research and observations, it turned out that thymus preparations play a major role in the treatment of many ailments and in building up the body’s immunity. To our initial surprise, orally administered thymus preparations turned out to be particularly effective (…)

Thymus preparations have a wide range of applications in treating illnesses which involve imbalance of the autoimmune response, in the direction of both hyperfunction and hypofunction of the immune system , i.e. in infectious, rheumatic or neuromuscular diseases and cancer, in multiple sclerosis and others (…) Such preparations extend life. When taken regularly, they enable vitality, intellectual vigour and professional activity to be maintained for longer. This means such a preparation can basically be recommended to everyone (…)”

(from the interview “Thymus preparations benefit homeostasis”)

Prof. dr hab med. Aleksander B. Skotnicki, specialist in haematology, transplantology and internal diseases, Head of the Department and Clinic of Haematology at the Medical Faculty of the Jagiellonian University – Collegium Medicum and Head of the Haematology Clinic at the University Hospital in Kraków. Author and co-author of nearly 300 publications and 12 books in the field of medicine:

“The efficiency of the immune system depends on the activity of the thymus, and as we know, with age and under the influence of external factors the thymus vanishes. Then, particularly in middle age and later, our “protective umbrella” is significantly weakened. Along with the drop in the level of thymic hormones, there is an increase in the frequency of autoimmunological and infectious diseases and cancers. Thymus-dependent immunity is therefore very important. If this is weakened, the risk of those illnesses grows (…)

Thymus preparations make it possible to supplement the deficiencies resulting from the atrophy of the thymus gland, thus giving valuable assistance for the reconstruction and reinforcement of our immune system, resulting in decreased vulnerability to infections, autoimmune diseases and cancers.”

(from the interview “Taking about Immunity”)

prof. Jan Józefczuk

A professor of medicine, paediatric specialist, children’s gastroenterologist.
Head of the Paediatric Ward with its Paediatric Cardiology Department at the Duch Święty Specialist Hospital in Sandomierz.

„(…) The thymus is an organ, a gland located in the upper part of the chest, which is vital for life, although often ignored and unappreciated. It is a key regulator of our immunity, which supervises and stimulates the entire immune system from birth until the end of our life.

The job of the thymus is to identify and eliminate pathogenic antigens.

The thymus can be compared to a computer and IT centre. This centre sends emails containing vital information to the cells of the immune system, including to the lymphocytes, differentiating between T and B lymphocytes, macrophages and other cells responsible for our immunity 

These cells receive detailed instructions of what to do – where their intervention is needed, and how they are to fight threats. The thymus mobilises its troops into action, e.g. T lymphocytes to seek and destroy sick cells and to eliminate exacerbations.

Like in a computer game, some of these warriors kill threats such as viruses and bacteria, and others like macrophages are involved in mopping up operations, swallowing and digesting intruders. 

They use various weapons, some fight hand-to-hand, others shoot at the threats. When the thymus is weakened, it is as if the computer has lost power. Then it becomes necessary to supplement it with thymic preparations which increase the power of the command centre. (…)

The thymus also influences stem cells. We all have these, they account for 0.2% of all our cells. It is thanks to the thymus that these cells differentiate depending on the requirements of our body at a given moment.

Pluripotential cells become multipotential, and these are the ones which are dedicated to defence, depending on the threats we face. Using the computer game metaphor, we can say that they receive the right weapon to combat a specific virus or infection. (…)

The last Nobel Prize made us aware of the need to change our approach to many chronic illnesses, indicating the necessity to strengthen, to unblock the proper immunological response. We have to be aware of the enormous role played by our immune system, and of how we should support and protect it.

The thymus as the “immune command centre” carries out this mission by default

This is also borne out by the good therapeutic effects obtained by Prof. Woźniewicz after thymus transplants in patients in extremely serious states. (…)”

(From a talk with Prof. Jane Józefczuk “About thymoma in children, among other things”)

Prof. Marek P. Dąbrowski

He was an outstanding doctor, scientist, Vice Rector of Warsaw Medical University, the precursor of modern immunotherapy.

“It is enough to remember the names of the Nobel Prizewinners of the last thirty years to recognise without a shadow of a doubt that there can be no modern medicine without modern immunology, the science of our body’s immunity. Immunodeficiency doesn’t just mean vulnerability to infections, it is also the threat of autoaggressive and allergic conditions, with a wide range of targets. Because of this, immunodeficiency is the basis of a variety of pathological phenomena (…) in various organs and systems.. But there’s more to it, because low immunity means the lack of another function of the system, or rather all the functions that help in the processes of repairing and regenerating tissues. So what tissues need this treatment? All of them, but especially those characterised by very rapid effects, e.g. vascular endothelium, epithelium of the respiratory and digestive tracts, the haematopoietic system. We can continue listing organs with an active functioning rhythm – the liver, kidneys, circulatory system and also nervous system, whose regenerative processes depend to a great extent on the functioning of the immune system. (…)