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Vitamin C injections 'slow tumour growth'

05/08/2008

Studies in mice have shown that high-dose injections of vitamin C can reduce tumour weight and growth rate by about 50 per cent.

Usually high levels of vitamin C, also known as ascorbate or ascorbic acid, are regulated by the body so that there is not a high concentration in the blood.

Research published today in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS) managed to bypass this by injecting ascorbate into rodents with aggressive brain, ovarian and pancreatic tumours.

Previous studies found that elevated amounts of ascorbate generate hydrogen peroxide, which slowed tumour growth in a mouse model.

In today's study the ascorbate injections reduced tumour growth and weight by 41 to 53 per cent.

In 30 per cent of brain cancer cases the cancer had spread to other organs, but the ascorbate-treated animals had no signs of cancer spreading.

"These pre-clinical data provide the first firm basis for advancing pharmacologic ascorbate in cancer treatment in humans," the researchers conclude.