High Dose Vitamin C a Complementary Cancer Therapy
Vitamin C is an old-time antioxidant, as well as an anti-aging and immune enhancing agent. There is increasing evidence now that high doses of Vitamin C, which can only be given intravenously, is a positive way of controlling many types of cancers.
The idea was first given in 1976 by the two-time Nobel Laureate Linus Pauling who reported that a majority of 100 terminal cancer patients treated with 10,000 mg of vitamin C per day survived three to four times longer than patients who were not so treated1.
In the same year, physicians in Scotland showed that intravenous vitamin C improved quality and length of life in terminal cancer patients2.
Even though the study was criticized badly at the time, The National Institutes of Health (NIH) researchers have conceded that intravenous vitamin C may be an effective treatment for cancer. They have reported that unlike cancer drugs, I.V. vitamin C selectively kills cancer cells, and not the healthy cells. It shows no toxicity. 3 The ability of intravenous vitamin C to kill lymphoma cells was remarkable – almost 100% at easily achievable blood serum concentrations4.
In 1982, Japanese doctors showed that vitamin C greatly prolonged the lives of terminal cancer patients5.
The Medical Group at McGill University, Montréal, Quebec reported that, at concentrations above 1000 µmol/L, vitamin C is toxic to some cancer cells but not to normal cells in vitro6.
The Office of Cancer Complementary and Alternative Medicine (OCCAM) at the US National Cancer Institute has documented a detailed review of cases showing success using high doses of Vitamin C in some types of cancers. They have taken the next step of conducting a phase I trial to establish the safety and dosage of high-dose intravenous vitamin C therapy for patients with advanced cancer7.
In 2006, a team of Johns Hopkins scientists showed that in mice at least, vitamin C - and potentially other antioxidants - can indeed inhibit the growth of some tumors8.
In 2008, Korean doctors reported that intravenous vitamin C "plays a crucial role in the suppression of proliferation of several types of cancer cells," notably melanoma9.
In 2008, new research led by US scientists from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) suggested that vitamin C can be a potent anticancer drug against at least some types of cancer. The research showed high dose injections of vitamin C reduced tumour weight and growth rate by about 50 percent in mouse models of brain, ovarian, and pancreatic cancers10.
How does Vitamin C work for cancer cells?
By Depleting the HIF Protein11: Researchers at John Hopkins discovered a protein called HIF-1 (hypoxia-induced factor) which helps an oxygen-starved cell convert sugar to energy without using oxygen, and also initiates new blood vessel formation to bring in a fresh oxygen supply. This protein was found to be abundant in untreated cancer cells taken from mice. However, it disappeared in vitamin C-treated cells taken from similar animals. Hence, vitamin C is postulated to exert local pro-oxidant effects in the interstitial fluid surrounding tumor cells, killing them or inhibiting their growth without affecting the normal cells.
Ability to Produce Superoxide Radicals12: Vitamin C readily donates an electron to produce transition metal ions. These ions readily react with O2, reducing it to superoxide radicals, which in turn dismutate to form H2O2 and O2.
By Increasing Hydrogen Peroxide level13: High-dose vitamin C, when administered intravenously, can increase hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) levels within cancer cells and kill them.
By Being an Anti Oxidant14: The scientific studies revealed that the antioxidants inhibit three tumorogenic models in vivo.
Anti-Proliferative Effect15:
The scientists with the faculty of Medicine in Marseille, France concluded that Ascorbic Acid has an anti-proliferative activity at elevated concentrations which could be obtained using IV injection. This activity has been observed in vitro as well in vivo.
