Vitamin C increase survival time and improve quality of life for terminal cancer patients

Vitamin C (for breast cancer survivors)

Ascorbic acid (vitamin C) is well known as the “anti-scurvy” vitamin. Many of us
remember learning in high-school biology that old-time sailors were infamous for
getting this dreadful disease, caused by an extreme vitamin C deficiency, until
Scottish surgeon James Lind uncovered the cure in citrus fruits.

Many of us also remember Linus Pauling, Nobel laureate and pioneering
researcher on the health effects of vitamin C. Some may even be familiar with his
famous trials in the 1970s and 1980s with Dr. Ewan Cameron. These trials suggested
that large intravenous doses of vitamin C helped increase survival time and improve
quality of life for terminal cancer patients (Cameron and Pauling 1976). Since then,
the use of intravenous vitamin C as a cancer treatment has been hotly debated. But
what has not been controversial is the importance of vitamin C as a helpful cancer
preventative and overall contributor to health and longevity.

How does it work? Ed proposes three prevention mechanisms concerning
vitamin C:

• Its intake can stimulate the immune system by increasing NK (natural killer) cell activity.

• It is a powerful antioxidant and therefore may inhibit carcinogenesis.

• It has an antihistamine effect. In animal studies, histamine and inflammation have long been associated with tumor promotion (Scolnik, Rubio, and Caro 1985).

Studies on the relationship between vitamin C and breast cancer risk have, thus
far, produced a hodgepodge of results. Several studies found no association, while
some noteworthy studies found a compelling relationship. In the Nurses’ Health
Study, for example, premenopausal women who obtained about 200 milligrams per
day of vitamin C from foods had less than half the risk of breast cancer of women
who consumed only 70 milligrams per day (Zhang et al. 1999). The FDA’s current
recommended daily allowance (RDA) for women, based on the amount needed to
prevent scurvy, is a meager 75 milligrams per day, possibly lulling us into a false
sense of security about this critical nutrient.

Our Perspective on Vitamin C

Vitamin C does its best work when consumed in a whole-food form, complete
with the bioflavonoids that are part of the vitamin C family. Flavonoids are a class
of plant compounds that not only act as antioxidants on their own but also boost the
power of vitamin C and other nutrients. Citrus bioflavonoids actually help increase
vitamin C absorption while working synergistically with it.

So, when it comes to vitamin C for breast cancer prevention, we encourage you
to eat plenty of vitamin C- and bioflavonoid-rich fruits and vegetables. We
recommend organic red peppers, strawberries, oranges, lemons, papayas, broccoli,
and kale as a great starting point.

The website of World’s Healthiest Foods (whfoods.com) contains a complete
listing and serves as a great reference for all health concerns, plus it’s one of our
favorite sites. As this encyclopedic resource informs us, vitamin C is highly
susceptible to degradation from air, water, and variations in temperature. Any type
of cooking, freezing, thawing, or canning (even steaming) can cause vitamin C–rich
produce to lose some of its potency. Handle with care!

For additional breast cancer protection, we recommend an additional 1 to 3
grams of vitamin C each day in supplement form. Buffered C with at least 500 to
750 milligrams of bioflavonoids is best.