Researchers at Brigham and Women’s Hospital and the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute in Boston conducted a study claiming to show how yoga stretching may have a positive impact on breast cancer. The problem is the study, conducted on mice, has nothing to do with yoga stretching or human breast cancer.

Young female mice had breast cancer cells injected into their mammary glands to induce tumors. They were then “stretched” for 10 minutes each day for four weeks – hung by their tails while their front paws grabbed the bars of a cage. The researchers claim this absurd “stretching” simulates the natural, gentle stretching experienced in yoga.

The experiment also used male mice who were first injected with carrageenan, a food additive, to create areas of painful inflammation. This was done to see if the stretching reduced the inflammation. After the experiment, all the mice were decapitated and then dissected.

Please send a letter to The Bernard Osher Foundation and the National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health (NCCIH) which funded this ludicrous study, to request that they cease support for such cruel and inapplicable animal experiments.

The forced stretching imposed on these poor mice has nothing to do with real yoga stretching, which is a form of mind-body interaction that combines focused breathing with periods of exertion and release. No yoga pose is ever held for ten straight minutes or involves external pulling that cannot be controlled by the person who is stretching.

Multiple human studies have already shown the benefits of physical activity for decreasing the reoccurrence of cancer and enhancing survival for breast cancer patients.

This experiment was simply a senseless study that inflicted unjustifiable misery and death on defenseless animals.

Please send your letter today to tell funders that human breast cancer patients would be much better served through a cooperation between clinical researchers and yoga practitioners, who work directly with humans.

Citizens for Alternatives to Animal Research & Experiments (CAARE), is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization, established to highlight and promote research without animals.

Please donate to support CAARE's mission to end animal suffering by disseminating information about the power and progress of research without animals.