There is no strong indicator that an STD causes prostate cancer, and researchers suspect that trichomonas is just one inflammation-causing factor that may contribute to the cancer or make it grow faster.

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Vitamin D also appears to play a role in healthy immune function and reducing inflammation, a risk factor for numerous diseases including cancer, heart disease and diabetes.

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Although the researchers did not explicitly examine the health of their simian charges, chronic, generalised inflammation is a risk factor, in people, for a long list of ailments ranging from heart trouble to Alzheimer's disease.

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Thalidomide works, in part, by blocking the production of tumour necrosis factor-alpha, a biochemical which promotes inflammation in the body.

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AGI-1067 is the first drug aimed at directly targeting inflammation in artery plaques, which could be a bigger risk factor for heart attacks and strokes than cholesterol itself.

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"Inflammation has been implicated in dementia and viral infections could be a triggering factor, " said Dr Strandberg.

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D-4F also seems to reduce inflammation in the arteries, which many doctors believe is as big a risk factor as cholesterol itself.

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The mutated form of a gene called complement factor H may cause the immune system to go awry, resulting in too much inflammation in the eye.

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