Boren's Syndrome

Boren's Syndrome is a human disease caused by prolonged exposure to high-yield plasma, such as from plasma grenades. It has several symptoms including brain tumors, migraines, and amnesia. Without proper treatment, it may also cause death. It is treatable by thirty weeks of intensive chemotherapy.

It is a condition that Sergeant Avery Johnson may have, caused by exposure to plasma grenades. It was said to have been contracted when he used an entire crate of plasma grenades to hold off Covenant forces on Paris IV. However, this is possibly a hoax used to hide that Sergeant Johnson could be a SPARTAN-I, known as the Paris/BS Spoof.

Several members of the United Rebel Front claimed to have this condition, they hoped to bargain with the UNSC to gain treatment for the condition in trade for some FENRIS Nuclear Warheads.

Several members of the UNSC have alleged that inhaling the gases released when a Carbine magazine is ejected causes Boren's Syndrome, but the truth of this statement is still unknown.

*NOTE: It is possible that Boren's Syndrome is sensitive to high yields of radiation, and although this is not comfirmed, it may explain Johnson's death, despite his regenerative abilities.

The Flood

The condition has an unexpected, beneficial side effect-- total immunity from Flood infection. Boren's Syndrome alters the neural synapses of its victims in a way that makes them too unstable for an Infection Form to manipulate or control. Any attempt by an Infection form to latch onto the central nervous system of such a host would in effect receive a "dead signal," much as a computer with a damaged Internet connection could not be hacked into, although internally it may be functional.

Sources

• Halo: First Strike pg.243-245
• Borens Syndrome Hoax