By Ken Mayer
Featuring insights from Dr. Beverly Rubik (biophysicist), Dr. Steve Haltiwanger (clinical nutritionist and bioelectric researcher), and Dr. Maria Chiara Magnani (cellular microbiology, University of Pavia)
“If chemistry is the language of medicine, then electricity is the grammar we forgot how to read.”
— Dr. Beverly Rubik
When you hear electromagnetic fields and cancer in the same sentence, it might trigger alarm bells. Aren’t we told to limit radiation? Avoid EMF exposure?
But that’s missing the bigger picture — and a rising body of scientific evidence is rewriting the narrative.
Because unlike the harmful high-frequency radiation from X-rays or cell towers, low-frequency PEMF (Pulsed Electromagnetic Field) therapy works with the body — not against it. And it’s beginning to show promise not only in pain relief and tissue repair, but in the unlikeliest of arenas: boosting immune function, disrupting tumor growth, and potentially even killing pathogens.
Welcome to the frontier of electric immunity — a place where physics meets immunology, and the body’s own voltage becomes a tool for healing.
Cancer: A Breakdown in Bioelectric Order?
Cancer has long been seen as a genetic disorder — mutations, uncontrolled growth, rogue cells multiplying in defiance of natural order. But a growing camp of researchers is asking a new question: what if cancer is also an electrical disease?
“Cancer cells often have a lower membrane potential than healthy cells,” says Dr. Steve Haltiwanger. “They’re electrically disordered — and that affects how they communicate, grow, and respond to the immune system.”
Studies have shown that restoring healthy electrical signaling in and around tumors may:
- Normalize abnormal cell growth [1]
- Reduce angiogenesis (the blood supply tumors need)
- Enhance immune cell surveillance and activity
- Increase the uptake and efficacy of chemotherapy drugs [2]
One of the key mechanisms? Voltage-gated ion channels, which control calcium, sodium, and potassium flow in cells — the same elements modulated by PEMF.
In a 2021 review in Cancer Medicine, researchers found that targeted electromagnetic field exposure disrupted tumor microenvironments in glioblastoma, breast cancer, and prostate cancer models — without harming surrounding healthy cells [3].
It’s not magic. It’s signal correction.
Infection: A New Kind of Antimicrobial?
On the other end of the immune spectrum lies another battlefield: infection. Antibiotic resistance is on the rise. Superbugs are evolving. Chronic infections — especially those caused by stealth pathogens like Borrelia burgdorferi (Lyme disease) or Pseudomonas aeruginosa in wounds — are becoming harder to treat.
Could PEMF be part of the solution?
“We’re seeing early evidence that PEMF affects bacterial biofilms — those sticky colonies that make infections so hard to kill,” says Dr. Maria Chiara Magnani, a microbiologist at the University of Pavia. “It may weaken the biofilm structure, disrupt bacterial metabolism, and improve antibiotic penetration.”
Some of the most intriguing results come from:
- In vitro studies showing reduced bacterial growth when exposed to specific PEMF frequencies [4]
- Mouse models with chronic wound infections where PEMF accelerated healing and decreased bacterial load [5]
- Observational reports from Lyme patients using PEMF devices to manage joint pain, inflammation, and brain fog — with some reporting symptomatic improvements even in treatment-resistant cases
While the exact mechanisms are still under investigation, it’s clear that electromagnetic stimulation interacts with the electrochemical gradients that both host and pathogen rely on. And by shifting those gradients, PEMF may tip the scales in favor of healing.
Citations and Primary Research
- Muehsam, D. et al. (2015). “Biological and medical applications of electromagnetic fields.” Journal of Integrative Medicine, 13(6): 329–345.
- Zimmerman, J.W. et al. (2012). “Tumor-specific frequencies suppress growth of human cancers in mice.” British Journal of Cancer, 106: 307–313.
- Sun, L. et al. (2021). “Bioelectromagnetic therapy in cancer: The mechanisms and clinical potential.” Cancer Medicine, 10(1): 303–316.
- Costerton, J.W. et al. (1999). “Bacterial biofilms: A common cause of persistent infections.” Science, 284(5418): 1318–1322.
- Hamblin, M.R. (2017). “Mechanisms and applications of the anti-inflammatory effects of photobiomodulation and PEMF.” AIMS Biophysics, 4(3): 337–361.
Signals as Medicine
Let’s pause and absorb this: We are entering a chapter of medicine where diseases are no longer just attacked — they are reprogrammed.
Instead of chemicals that force biological outcomes, we’re exploring how gentle, targeted energy can nudge the body back into coherence. That coherence — across voltage, rhythm, and signaling — may be the very definition of health itself.
As Dr. Rubik puts it:
“Cells don’t just respond to molecules. They respond to fields. And when the field is right, biology follows.”
It’s not science fiction. It’s the bioelectric future.
What’s Next in the Series?
In Bioelectric Science, Vol. IV, we’ll explore the new frontier of personalized bioelectric medicine — where AI designs healing frequencies based on your genetics, your immune profile, and your real-time biology. We’ll speak with engineers building electroceutical wearables, neuroscientists studying brainwave entrainment, and the companies betting that the next drug isn’t a pill — it’s a signal.
Bioelectric Science Series Recap:
- Vol. I: The Future is Electric — The origin story
- Vol. II: The Signal Effect — PEMF and inflammation
- Vol. III: Electric Immunity — Cancer and infections
- �� Vol. IV: The Personalized Pulse — AI and the programmable body