The immune system holds the key to human health. In The Beautiful Cure, leading immunologist Daniel M. Davis describes how the scientific quest to understand how the immune system works--and how it is affected by stress, sleep, age, and our state of mind--is now unlocking a revolutionary new approach to medicine and well-being.

The body's ability to fight disease and heal itself is one of the great mysteries and marvels of nature. But in recent years, painstaking research has resulted in major advances in our grasp of this breathtakingly beautiful inner world: a vast and intricate network of specialist cells, regulatory proteins, and dedicated genes that are continually protecting our bodies. Far more powerful than any medicine ever invented, the immune system plays a crucial role in our daily lives. We have found ways to harness these natural defenses to create breakthrough drugs and so-called immunotherapies that help us fight cancer, diabetes, arthritis, and many age-related diseases, and we are starting to understand whether activities such as mindfulness might play a role in enhancing our physical resilience.

Written by a researcher at the forefront of this adventure, The Beautiful Cure tells a dramatic story of scientific detective work and discovery, of puzzles solved and mysteries that linger, of lives sacrificed and saved. With expertise and eloquence, Davis introduces us to this revelatory new understanding of the human body and what it takes to be healthy.

Daniel M. Davis began studying the immune system at Harvard University, after obtaining a PhD in Physics. He is Professor of Immunology at Manchester University and Director of Research in the Manchester Collaborative Centre for Inflammation Research, having previously acted as Head of the Immunology Section at Imperial College London. He has published over 130 academic papers, collectively cited over 11,000 times, including articles in Nature, Science and Scientific American.

Davis is passionate about taking readers to the cutting edge of important research, especially on science subjects with real-life implications for human health and wellbeing. His book The Secret Body: How the New Science of the Human Body Is Changing the Way We Live offers a revolutionary new vision of human biology and the scientific breakthroughs that will transform our lives. He was described by Stephen Fry as a writer who “makes you look at everything human in a new, challenging and thrilling way” and is often invited to speak at festivals, conferences and other public events. You can watch his short history of the scientific revolution for WIRED here. 

Source: Princeton University Press