Studies Show High Dose IV Vitamin C Kills Lung Cancer Cells
Lung cancer
50 years of research and clinical use delivers proof that high dose Vitamin C infusions kill cancer cells while reducing toxicity from chemo/radiation therapy.
In the last several decades the 10-year survival rate for many cancers has increased significantly, yet lung cancer lags behind with a 5-year survival below 20%. These studies show that using high-dose IV vitamin C (VitC) kills cancer cells, can help restrict cancer growth, sensitizes cancer cells to chemo and radiation therapy, and reduces toxicity from standard care treatments.
The promising evidence demonstrates that high dose Vitamin C delivered intravenously (IVC) is a non-toxic therapy that improves the effectiveness of radio and chemo treatments. The studies also report an ability to improve the quality of life and extend overall life.
Important Stats and Quotes From IV Vitamin C Studies
“NSCLC and studies demonstrated that ascorbate (vitamin C) combined with radio-chemotherapy significantly increased overall survival compared with radio-chemotherapy alone”
High dose IV vitamin C infusions three times per week increased progression free and overall survival by 60% for Stage III-IV Lung Cancer Patients.
“Clinical trials show IVC’s safety, high tolerability and relief from the side effects of chemotherapy”
All studies show Quality of Life is significantly increased for advanced stage patients that receive IVC vs those that only receive standard care.
Vitamin C improves survival in Stage III & IV lung cancer patients (Stage III-IV)
The Phase I and II clinical trial researches the safety and efficacy of high dose intravenous Vitamin C (IVC) with Stage III and IV non-small-cell lung cancer (NSCLC) patients. The patients included were considered not curable with surgery, radiotherapy, chemotherapy, or targeted therapy.
The study compared a group of patients that received IVC, modulated electrohyperthermia (mEHT) therapy, and best supportive care (BSC) against those that only received BSC.
After a median follow-up of 24 months, vitamin C significantly improved progression-free survival (PFS) and overall survival (OS) compared to BSC alone. Despite the poor prognosis of the advanced NSCLC cancer, 30% of the patients receiving the IVC survived beyond the total study length of 40 months (no one continued beyond the study from the BSC only group). The study showed that IVC is shown to be safe with advanced stage cancer patients, and is capable of improving quality of life, prolong progression free survival and overall survival.
The National Cancer Institute (NCI) is the leader in funding research into high dose vitamin C for cancer research.
NCI currently funds over 10 IVC clinical trials.
Cornell Medical & Holden Cancer Center using high dose IV vitamin C to treat lung cancer
World leading cancer centers combine IVC with chemo, radiation, and surgery to treat lung cancer.
Cornell Medical Center
Weill Cornell Medical Center is conducting an active Phase II trial to study the effects of high dose intravenous Vitamin C (IVC) on three groups of lung cancer patients:
Patients will receive IVC infusions 4 days per week 2-4 weeks prior to surgery to remove the solid tumor.
Patients with inoperable KRAS or BRAF mutant lung cancer who have received at least one line of standard treatment will receive high dose Vitamin C 4 days per week for 6 months
Patients will receive IVC for 1-3 weeks, during first week y90 radioembolization of hepatic metastases will be administered the same day as IVC therapy.
The study started in March of 2017 and is expected to conclude June 2023.
Holden Comprehensive Cancer Center
The Holden Cancer Center at the University of Iowa is managing two Phase II trials for Lung Cancer treatment using IVC. Both are active but only NCT02905591 is still recruiting. Both combine IVC with chemotherapies Paclitaxel and Carboplatin to treat NSCLC patients, however the NCT02905591 study includes 30 days of radiotherapy. The studies are planned to conclude in December of 2024 and December of 2026 respectively.
The fourth clinical trial is in Phase I, the NSCLC patients received IVC alongside the targeted therapy Tyrosine Kinase Inhibitor. The study started in December of 2018 and should have findings reported in 2023.
Vitamin C improves chemo/radiation/targeted therapy lung cancer cell kill rate
Daily Vitamin C injections with radio-chemotherapy
This study researched the cancer cell-selective cytotoxicity of ascorbic acid, and its ability to sensitize lung cancer cells to radio-chemotherapy. NSCLC cells H292 and H1299 were included in the tests. Daily injections of vitamin C combined with radio-chemotherapy significantly improved overall survival compared with radio-chemotherapy alone (roughly 80% improvement). The primary observed anticancer mechanism and radio-chemotherapy sensitizing feature is brought on by Vitamin C generating high and steady levels of H202 (hydrogen peroxide).
High dose vitamin C with fasting increased cancer cell death
The first pre-clinical study included contributions from Italian and US cancer research institutions. They documented that conditions that mimicked a low calorie and low sugar diet combined with high dose Vitamin C created a synergistic effect that selectively targeted KRAS-mutant cancer cells and prevented tumor progression (mutated forms of the KRAS gene can be found in non-small cell lung cancer, colorectal cancer, and pancreatic cancer).
H2O2 is abundantly created when high levels of ascorbic acid comes into contact with the iron rich environment that is often around cancer cells. H2O2 can easily cross into the cancer cell and reacts with active metals inside leading to production of hydroxyl radicals (this is known as the Fenton reaction). Hydroxyl radicals cause damage to a few cell components, but the major damage occurs to the cancer cell DNA. This DNA damage is what sensitizes the cancer cell to the Carboplatin and radiation therapy treatment, which also further damage the cancer cell DNA. This blocks cell division and results in cancer cell death.
This observed mechanism of action by Vitamin C adds to a growing body of evidence that explains why Vitamin C is consistently synergistic with genotoxic chemotherapies and/or radiation that are known to induce DNA damage. The promising results obtained by the University of Iowa has prompted them to complete several Phase I and II trials to further research the safety and efficacy of Vitamin C in combination with standard treatments.
Vitamin C makes Gefitnib more effective at killing lung cancer cells
The third preclinical study reports ascorbic acid can provide a synergistic effect when used with targeted cancer therapy gefitnib. The researchers recorded approximately a 40% improvement in the ability to inhibit cancer cell proliferation when compared to treating the tumor with gefitnib alone.
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