Ask The Doctor: Nov 6

This week on Ask The Doctor the topic is “Immunity Wars” with tips to make your defences stronger.

Our immune system battles bacteria, viruses and parasites in a valiant effort to prevent us from getting sick. So, what can we do to make our defences stronger? The doctors reveal handy tips for staying healthy and investigate the new treatments on the horizon.

Shalin reveals the ground-breaking therapy being used to create cancer fighting super cells. He visits the Peter MacCallum Cancer Centre in Melbourne, where his blood’s T-cells are supercharged, turning them into cancer-killing machines. Shalin also meets Karen, a melanoma patient benefiting from a revolutionary therapy which is helping her stay cancer-free.

Caroline shows how the immune system really works, sorting out fact from fiction. She answers common questions, including: Why do we get sicker in winter? Can travelling on a plane increase your chances of catching the common cold? Do vitamin supplements make any difference?

Sandro finds out what happens when the immune system goes wrong. He meets Nicki, a patient with Guillain-Barre Syndrome that attacks the nervous system, causing muscles to fail one by one. To combat this debilitating disorder, she received a life-saving transfusion of a blood component known as ‘liquid gold’. It’s an expensive treatment due to the large numbers of donors required, so Sandro investigates what people can do to help out.

Lastly, there’s a fun match between arch-rivals ‘team virus’ and ‘team immune’, who battle it out on the sports field – all in the name of science! Caroline and Shalin commentate this entertaining game, to show what happens when your immune system goes head to head with a foreign invader, like the flu.

8pm Tuesday on ABC.