IV High-Dose Vitamin C For Cancer

What is Vitamin C?

L-ascorbic acid, more commonly known as Vitamin C, is an antioxidant that plays a large role in immune health and overall wellness. This antioxidant is not naturally produced by your body but is easy to find in many types of food, especially citrus. Vitamin C is also readily available as an over-the-counter supplement or as part of an IV treatment.

Like other antioxidants, vitamin C helps prevent free radicals from causing damage to your cells and DNA by pairing with these molecules and expediting their removal from your body. Vitamin C plays an important part in the production of collagen, a type of connective tissue that promotes wound healing. Taken all together, Vitamin C is a significant element of a healthy immune system.

While Vitamin C is most often associated with cold and flu, new research has found that high doses of vitamin C may be a complementary type of cancer therapy alongside traditional treatments such as radiation therapy and chemotherapy.

How Does High-Dose Vitamin C for Cancer Work?

High-dose vitamin C is a complementary therapy in addition to traditional cancer treatments. Early studies suggest that high doses of vitamin C may kill cancer cells by naturally breaking down into hydrogen peroxide that can damage tissue and DNA. This damage may impair cell repair much like chemotherapy or radiation therapy, thereby leading to tumor shrinkage and malignant cell death.

High-dose vitamin C is not a substitute for therapies such as radiation or chemotherapy. These therapies target cancerous cells and impair or destroy their ability to regenerate, ultimately leading to cell death. High-dose vitamin C is also not a replacement for surgery, in which malignant cells are physically removed from the body. Adding high-dose vitamin C to a cancer treatment plan may help improve symptoms and contribute to a better quality of life.

Are There Any Side Effects of IV High-Dose Vitamin C?

IV High-dose vitamin C is generally well-tolerated, meaning that there are few side effects for most people. However, treatment may not be suitable for individuals who have certain risk factors.

These risk factors include:

• Individuals with kidney disease
• Individuals with hemochromatosis, a condition where the body stores too much iron
• Individuals with G6PD deficiency, as treatment may cause the premature breakdown of red blood cells (hemolysis)

It’s also important to note that high doses of vitamin C may interact with certain anticancer medications. Your medical provider will review your medical history and determine whether or not IV high-dose vitamin C can safely be added to your treatment plan.

What Are the Risks of Treatment?

There are certain risks of IV treatments in general, which include:

• Minor chance of infection at the injection site
• Swelling, redness, or tenderness at the injection site
• Bruising
• Air embolism

Getting treatment with a licensed and trained medical provider can minimize these risks.

Comparing Oral Supplements And IV Vitamin C

Although oral supplements are convenient to pick up at the local pharmacy, they may not be ideal for high doses of vitamin C for cancer. The relative bioavailability (the amount your body can use) of oral vitamin C supplements depends on the dose. Low doses of vitamin C are well-absorbed, but higher doses undergo exponential diminishing returns as the absorption mechanism is overwhelmed.

IV therapy is a more effective option than oral supplements to deliver high doses of vitamin C to the body. IV therapy delivers fluids, vitamins, and antioxidants directly into your bloodstream, bypassing the digestive system to ensure maximum absorption.

High doses of IV-administered vitamin C have a higher absorption rate than oral supplementation, leading to higher concentrations in the blood. One study found that IV-administered concentrations were as much as twenty-five times higher than orally-administered doses.

What Are the Benefits of High-Dose Vitamin C For Cancer?

There are many potential benefits of high-dose vitamin C as a cotherapy for cancer treatment. However, it’s important to remember that Vitamin C is not a cure for cancer and should only be used if your doctor recommends you do so. High doses of vitamin C may interfere with certain types of medications.

The potential benefits of delivery IV high-dose vitamin C for cancer include:

• Vitamin C infusion has few side effects
• May improve quality of life
• May slow the progression of the disease by decreasing proliferation of cancer cells
• May reduce the side effects of co-therapies
• May decrease side effects of toxicities caused by traditional co-therapies
• May be a beneficial supplement to traditional cancer treatments as part of combination therapy
• IV drip administration of high-dose vitamin C is effective for people who have conditions that restrict the body’s ability to absorb nutrients
• Helps remove free radicals and regulates redox reactions that cause damage to DNA, which in turn leads to aging and certain health conditions
• In addition to these, high doses of vitamin C may boost the effectiveness of traditional treatments by helping boost the immune system, which is often weakened by the demands of traditional therapy.

High doses of vitamin C appear to affect a specific type of cancerous cells – those with low levels of catalase enzyme. These types of cancers cells have a diminished ability to remove hydrogen peroxide, causing damage that can lead to cell death. Cancer cells with higher levels of catalase enzyme are less affected by this treatment. DNA damage only occurs to cancerous cells. Healthy cells are able to function normally and are not harmed by the hydrogen peroxide produced by high doses of vitamin C.

Want to know more? You can learn more about High-Dose Vitamin C and Cancer at the National Institutes of Health. You can also learn more about antioxidants and free radicals and their role in cancer at Cancer.gov.

Improved Quality of Life

In addition to its role as a complementary type of cancer treatment, high-dose Vitamin C may improve the quality of life for individuals undergoing traditional cancer treatment. Whether patients are receiving chemotherapy, radiation therapy, surgery, or a combination of therapies, they may experience symptoms such as fatigue, nausea and vomiting, pain, loss of appetite, insomnia, or a combination of these.

Intravenous high-dose vitamin C in particular shows promise for improving a patient’s quality of life. IV high-dose vitamin C bypasses the absorption mechanism in the digestive system, leading to a superior concentration of this vitamin in a patient’s body. In this study, patients reported improved physical as well as cognitive and emotional symptoms.

Improving a patient’s quality of life during recovery can help an individual’s comfort and energy levels during recovery or provide an additional facet to palliative care in terminal patients.

How Does In-Home Treatment Work?

In-home IV treatments are safe and straightforward. Here’s what to expect.

• A nurse arrives at your location with all of the equipment needed for treatment
• They will clean and prep the injection site to minimize the chance of infection
• The IV will be administered via a catheter and tubing
• Your nurse will remain with you for the duration of the infusion, which typically takes 30 – 45 minutes
• Unless your doctor instructs you otherwise, there is no downtime after your infusion. You can resume your normal activities following treatment.

It’s important that you wear comfortable, loose-fitting clothes with access to your arms, as the IV will typically be administered at the inside of your elbow. You should also expect to remain seated for the duration of your infusion. Having a book, show, or game on-hand can help you stay entertained during your treatment.

Why Get High-Dose Vitamin C At Home Instead Of A Clinic?

You can get IV treatments at a specialty clinic or at home, but why choose in-home care? In-home high-dose vitamin C treatments have several advantages over infusions in a traditional clinic setting, including:

• Convenient for individuals with busy schedules or a busy family life
• Saves the time and hassle of sitting in traffic to and from a clinic
• Individuals with mobility considerations do not need to worry about arranging transportation
• Individuals who work from home can continue working during their treatment
• You can avoid potential exposure to viruses such as COVID-19 with in-home treatments
• IV infusions are on your time and schedule and can easily fit between cancer treatment appointments