Cancer, Autoimmunity and Immune Retraining

This work proposes a unified theoretical framework for cancer and autoimmune disease based on immune learning dynamics rather than molecular defects. We introduce the Immunological Indeterminacy Window (IIW), a transient phase during tissue destabilization in which immune recognition is plastic. Failure to engage during this window leads to Pathological Tolerance Lock-In (PTLI), enabling tumor persistence, while excessive late immune activation produces Containment Overshoot Syndrome (COS), underlying autoimmunity. We analyze how several existing therapies inadvertently trigger COS and outline a conceptual immune retraining approach based on restoring boundary recognition rather than global immune activation. This paper is purely theoretical and intended to support interdisciplinary discussion in immunology, oncology, and complex systems science.