Larry Posted September 21, 2005 Share Posted September 21, 2005 AOL Health Main ----------------------------------- Diseases & Conditions Drugs & Herbs Doctors & Insurance Diet & Nutrition Fitness & Exercise Alternative Health Health & Beauty Sexual Health Mental Health Pregnancy Clinical Trials Health News ----------------------------------- Women's Health Men's Health Children's HealthAging Well ----------------------------------- About AOL Health Tuesday, September 20, 2005 · WebMD Main · Condition Centers · Drugs & Herbs · Medical Library · Health Tools · Find a Doctor · Clinical Trials · Health Plans & More · Women, Men, Lifestyle · Pregnancy & Family · Diet & Nutrition · Chats & Boards · About WebMD · Sponsors · Your Privacy · Site Map sponsoredFeatured Centers • Play SleepSweeps • Nighttime GERD • Get Vitamins 50% Off • Pregnant? Get Gifts. You are in Condition Centers. Choose a TopicAll ConditionsADD/ADHDAllergiesAlzheimer'sArthritisAsthmaBack PainBipolar DisorderCancerCholesterol ManagementDental HealthDepressionDiabetes 1 & 2EpilepsyEye HealthHeart DiseaseHeartburn/GERDHypertensionInfertilityMen's ConditionsMigraines/HeadachesMultiple SclerosisPain ManagementSexual HealthSkin & BeautyStrokeWeight ManagementWomen's Conditions Study: Vitamin C May Fight Cancer Lab Tests Show Possible Effect From IV Doses; More Work Needed By Miranda Hitti WebMD Medical News Reviewed By Brunilda Nazario, MD on Monday, September 12, 2005 More From WebMD Special Report: A Closer Look at Cancer Fighting Prostate Cancer With Hormone Therapy Predicting Cancer's Spread: Gene Clue Found Sept. 12, 2005 -- Vitamin C may have some cancer-fighting potential, new research shows. It's possible, but many questions remain, write Mark Levine, MD, and colleagues in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. "This is not ready for patients yet," Levine tells WebMD. He is the chief and senior staff physician at the Molecular and Clinical Nutrition Section of the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases (NIDDK), a branch of the National Institutes of Health. "What this does is provide plausibility that we should be reinvestigating ascorbic acid in cancer treatment. It's not ready for patients. Patients shouldn't get the wrong idea. We don't want to provide false hope," says Levine. "If it were to work, even in a couple of cancers, that would be wonderful for patients. So the message is that there may be new hope coming, but it's certainly not here," he says. About the Study Levine's team studied vitamin C (also called ascorbate or ascorbic acid) and cancer cells in lab tests. Vitamin C appeared to boost production of hydrogen peroxide, which killed cancer cells and left healthy cells unharmed. The levels of vitamin C were so high that they could only be achieved through IV infusions. "These findings give plausibility to IV ascorbic acid in cancer treatment, and have unexpected implications for treatment of infections where hydrogen peroxide may be beneficial," write the researchers. Vitamin C's Role Vitamin C didn't directly tackle cancer. Instead, it may set the stage for hydrogen peroxide production, says Levine. "One would never want to give intravenous hydrogen peroxide," says Levine. "If hydrogen peroxide formed in the blood or were given directly, either blood will destroy it or if enough hydrogen peroxide is given, hydrogen peroxide will break the red cells and cause havoc to the kidneys," he says. When vitamin C is injected, it appears to diffuse outside of the bloodstream, allowing reactions to generate hydrogen peroxide. "You don't want hydrogen peroxide in the blood itself," says Levine. "But if hydrogen peroxide is present outside the blood, there is the potential that it could work as a drug." Page: 1 | 2 Next: Vitamin C Safety Trial Under Way Print Friendly Version Email a Friend Physician | Corporate Contact Us | Terms and Conditions | Privacy Policy and Agreement © 1996-2005 WebMD Corporation. All rights reserved. WebMD is a licensee of the TRUSTe Privacy Program and subscribes to the HONcode principles of the Health On the Net Foundation AOL Health Main ----------------------------------- Diseases & Conditions Drugs & Herbs Doctors & Insurance Diet & Nutrition Fitness & Exercise Alternative Health Health & Beauty Sexual Health Mental Health Pregnancy Clinical Trials Health News ----------------------------------- Women's Health Men's Health Children's HealthAging Well ----------------------------------- About AOL Health Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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