Vitamin C Linked to Fewer Deaths in Blood Cancer Trial — SkimNews
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- EVITA trial randomized 109 participants in Denmark and the United States — 55 received 1,000 mg/day oral vitamin C and 54 received placebo for 12 months; the vitamin C and placebo arms produced comparable effects on the primary measure of abnormal cell growth.
- Vitamin C recipients showed favorable changes in inflammatory signaling and experienced fewer cases of anemia, pneumonia, acute aseptic arthritis, and internal bleeding, though gastrointestinal problems were more common in the vitamin C arm.
- At a median 33.6-month follow-up, 35 participants had died — 24 in the placebo group versus 11 in the vitamin C group, according to an exploratory analysis that researchers say requires confirmation in a larger phase 3 trial.
- Peter A. Jones of Van Andel Institute, co-senior author, said the findings offer a 'strong rationale' to continue exploring whether vitamin C could help intercept leukemia development in early-stage blood disorders.
- Kirsten Grønbæk of Rigshospitalet at Copenhagen University Hospital, the other co-senior author, said it remains 'too soon to make recommendations' and called for a definitive phase 3 study.
- The trial was conducted by the Van Andel Institute–Stand Up To Cancer Epigenetics Dream Team and published in the peer-reviewed journal CANCER.
Why it matters: The 11-versus-24 death count is an exploratory finding from a trial not designed to measure mortality, so it cannot guide clinical care yet — but if a phase 3 study confirms the survival signal, an inexpensive supplement could alter prevention strategies for early-stage blood disorders.
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