Cancer andVitamin C Therapyfor Patientsby Reagan Houston, MS, PEIntroduction

Mainline cancer therapies areimproving only slowly. Vitamin Cfor cancer therapy is safe, effective,and with essentially no long termside effects. In 1969, the NationalCancer Institute' (NCI) determinedhow vitamin C safely kills cancer.The NCI lab test was confirmedby clinical tests in Scotland andCanada on hundreds of patients.This review summarizes problemswith present therapies, safety,and government regulations, anddiscusses what cancer patients cansafely do to live longer. They canimprove their cancer therapy by alow glucose diet and adding vitaminC and other supplements to regulartherapies.

What Is Cancer?There are over 100 types of

cancer and many subtypes.When normal cells mutate towarduncontrolled growth, theyultimately become cancer. Butcancer cells continue to mutate andmicroevolve toward even fastergrowth. Steve Hickey^ and HilaryRoberts beautifully explain thismicroevolution. Within a givencancer, some cells are normal, some

are slightly mutated, and some maybe highly mutated. Since all cancersmutate toward the same goal - rapidgrowth - they become functionallysimilar: advanced cancers consumeglucose voraciously. Fortunately,glucose intake makes cancerscontrollable by vitamin C.

By evaluating a clinical test ofadvanced cancers of many types asa single disease or function, the trialby Abram Hoffer '̂' becomes morerelevant and understandable. Hefollowed 134 patients for a period of15 years. Based on microevolution/mutation, his clinical trial changesfrom a group of many anecdotestoward a useful trial of a singletherapy for many types of cancerhaving a single function. The in vitroNCI test and Hoffer's clinical trialshow that vitamin C at sufficientlyhigh dosage will kill aggressivecancers of many types.

Vitamin C TherapiesEwan Cameron and Linus

Pauling^ found that vitamin Chelped terminal, hospitalizedcancer patients live about fourtimes as long as matched patientsnot given vitamin C. Cameronadministered vitamin C in the form

of sodium ascorbate both orallyand intravenously to treat over 1000cancer patients. His recommendedregimen*^ was an initial ten-dayperiod of IV vitamin C at 10,000 mg/day, followed by 10,000 mg/day ofvitamin C orally and continuously.

Hoffer ran a test with 134 patientshaving 30 types of advancedcancer. Hoffer prescribed a dietlow In meat, very low in sugar, buthigh in fruits, vegetables, and water(Table 1).* The vitamin C should betaken in three or four divided dosespreferably with meals.

Additional supplements^^'^ thatimprove vitamin C therapy couldinclude coenzyme QIO, alpha lipoicacid, and vitamins D3, K3, and Esuccinate.

Table 1. Hoffer's Daily Regimen forCancer

Vitamin C 12,000 mg

range 3,000 to 40.000

Beta carotene 30,000 IU

Vitamin B complex B-50 to B-100

Vitamin E 300 IU

Selenium 600 meg

Zinc 60 mg

92 TOWNSEND LETTER - AUGUST/SEPTEMBER 2007

Hoffer has treated over thirtytypes of cancers with impressiveresults (Table 2). Most of hispatients had advanced cancersthat couid not be helped bymore surgery, radiation, orchemotherapy, ln Hoffer's testgroup, those who refused vitaminslived a median of only 2.6 months.Those who accepted vitamins lived45 months after seeing Hoffer. All32 of the breast cancer patientshad surgery, radiation, and/orchemotherapy. The median life ofthese very sick patients who choseto take vitamins was 70 months,while those without vitamins livedonly 3.7 months.

Table 2. Median Survival ofHoffer's Patients, Months^

Type of With Without

Cancer Vitamins Vitamins

Breast 70 3.7

Uterus 99 4.0

Ovary 16 3.6

Lung 17 2.0

Pancreas 40 2.4

All 30 Types 45 2.6

To all of his cancer patients,Hoffer offered the vitamin regimen,diet, and hope based on theresults with earlier patients. Thosewho accepted vitamins thus hadthree advantages over those whorejected vitamins. Self-selectionis typical of real life but not idealfor statistical evaluation. Howeverself-selection would not explain thelarge difference in survival times.Hoffer obtained good results withoral-only vitamin C, apparentlybecause he included a low-glucosediet, vitamin C, and supplementsthat helped vitamin C kill thecancer. The therapies of Cameronand Hoffer have many advantages(Table 3).

Hoffer's vitamin therapy "hasgiven [his patients] more energy,improved depression and anxiety,created a sense of well-being, easedpain, and often eliminated painentirely."^

Table 3. Advantages of Vitamin CTherapies'*^

• Systemic therapy rather than local• No long-term side effects• Often relieves pain within two weeks• Fifteen-year clinical test with 134

patients by Hoffer• Over 1,300 patients treated by

Hoffer and 1,000 by Cameron• Helpful with most or all types of

cancer• Apparently are not limited by cancer

mutation• Economical• Materials available over the counter

(use with professional supervisionfor safety)

• Safe for use now but developmentshould improve results

Other Vitamin C RegimensIrwin Stone'" reported on a

patient, JK, whose prostate cancerafter surgery and radiation hadspread to his pelvis, lung, and ribcage. At this diagnosis, he wasdeclared terminal with one year tolive. J chose a no-beef, no-candydiet and gradually increased hisoral vitamin C to 80,000 mg/day Hewas able to continue working everyday. At one point while under highstress, he increased his vitamin Cto 150,000 mg/day (one-third of apound) without having diarrhea!He apparently lived eight yearsafter being declared terminal.

Creagan" and Moertel'^ claimedto repeat Cameron's test, but didnot follow Cameron's instructionsor regimen. They did not findvitamin C to be helpful. Creagan'srandomized test used patientswhose immune system had beendecimated by prior chemotherapy.Moertel administered vitamin Cfor an average of only 2.5 months,although the test lasted over 14months. Also, they administeredvitamin C pills orally insteadof by IV as Cameron had done.Diet and frequency of dosagewere important but uncontrolledvariables. The modificationsdeveloped by Creagan and Moerteishowed that some regimensdo not work. Their claims thatvitamin C is "not effective against

advanced malignant disease" is anunwarranted generalization. Theirtests do not diminish the successof Cameron's work.

Basic ScienceThe National Cancer Institute'

and the National Institute ofHealth'* reported on a mechanismby which vitamin C kills cancer.The ascorbate (reduced) form ofvitamin C reacts with free radicalsto form dehydroascorbate (DHA).Free iron or copper may promotethis in a Fenton reaction. The DHAenters the cancer cells throughthe channels that bring in glucose.DHA competes with glucose toenter cancer cells, so a low-glucosediet is helpful and may be critical.Advanced cancers have excessglucose channels to bring in theextra glucose that cancers require.Inside the cancer cells, the DHAis converted to ascorbate andhydrogen peroxide.' The hydrogenperoxide kills cancer by a free-radical, oxidation process.'

Hydrogen peroxide can promotecell growth, but an excess ofhydrogen peroxide can kill cancercells. The amount of catalasein cancer cells is often severelydecreased. Catalase is an enzymethat neutralizes hydrogen peroxideand limits the oxidizing radicals innormal cells. Normal cells are notharmed by iarge doses of vitaminC, because they limit the intake ofascorbate and contain sufficientcatalase to destroy the hydrogenperoxide normally produced.

Vitamin C has a short half-life inblood plasma, about 30 minutes.Oral ingestion gives a serum peakin about two hours, and the levelthen drops to half in about anotherhour. Thus, vitamin C should ideallybe taken in frequent, divided doses.Note that Hoffer successfully used12,000 mg/day in three or fourdivided doses, mostly with meals.The divided intake would increasethe minimum ascorbate level farabove a single dose. Vitamin C is anantioxidant in most of the body but

TOWNSEND LETTER - AUGUST/SEPTEMBER 2007 93

Cancer and Vitamin C Therapy

a cell-killing oxidant in cancer cells.In vitro and in some animal tests,vitamin C at low or intermediatelevels can promote the growth ofcancer cells more than normalcells. Hoffer recommended at least3,000 mg/day of ascorbate forhumans and avoided this problem.Glucose limiting may be critical.'^Glucose promotes cancer growth,and DHA, tf in sufficient quantity,can oxidize and kill cancer. It issuggested that the ratio of DHA toglucose may help determine theproper dose of vitamin C and mayeven predict the recovery rate forcancer patients. Perhaps higherdietary glucose can be balancedby a higher dose of ascorbate.Further study is recommended.Meanwhile, the regimens describedby Hoffer and Stone are effective: alow glucose diet and oral vitaminC at 12,000 mg/day up to boweltolerance.

Vitamin C Is SafeMany people have taken 30,000

mg/day for years. Some doctors'^have given 200,000 mg/day by IV.Some claim that vitamin C "might"cause kidney stones, althoughdoctors who give large doses ofvitamin C rarely see stones in theirpatients. Ascorbic acid can makethe urine acidic to dissolve somestones.

Excessive vitamin C can causediarrhea. People with cancer canfrequently take and need oralvitamin C at 30,000 mg/day, whilewell peopie have a typical limit of3,000 to 10,000 mg/day. If peopieon therapeutic doses of vitamin Cdevelop diarrhea, the dose shouldbe reduced. Actually, diarrheais a useful indicator, because itprovides a simple measure of theproper dosage for each individual.Hoffer's patients, who took from3,000 to 40,000 mg/day, illustratethe wide range of dosages suitablefor individual cancer therapy.

Humans cannot make thevitamin C they need, although mostanimals can. A 160-pound goat"̂ canmake 13,000 mg/day - a reasonabledose for people with cancer. Table4 includes some of the precautions,side effects, and alternativeslisted by Casciari'^ and others.However, Cameron and Hoffer didnot report that they followed theprecautions in step 5 regarding thedeficiency of glucose-6-phosphatedehydrogenase enzyme. Cameron'sand Hoffer's experiences show thatvitamin therapy must be continuedfor years or continuously, althoughthe dosages can usually be reducedafter several months. Thus cancercan become a treatable chronicdisease instead of an acute terminalillness.

Table 4. Precautions with High-DoseVitamin C

1. Build up the dose slowly by about1,000 or 2,000 mg/day to minimizediarrhea and other problems. Becareful if there is a large load ofadvanced cancer.

2. If necessary, decrease the doseslowly to allow the body to adjust.

3. Vitamin C - especially ascorbic acid- may cause gas, upset stomach,or skin itch. If this problem occurs,consider using sodium ascorbate orcalcium ascorbate.

4. Excess sodium intake from sodiumascorbate Is possible. Considerusing potassium ascorbate orascorbic acid.

5. Some people have a raredeficiency of glucose-6-phosphatedehydrogenase enzyme, and largedoses may cause acute anemia.

6. For their own safety, people shouldwork with a doctor knowledgeableabout vitamins.

7. Patients should be checked for renalinsufficiency, chronic hemodialysis,unusual forms of iron overload,calcium buildup, and oxalate stoneformation.

8. Some people may not be able to usehigh doses of vitamin C.

The Status of Cancer TherapiesRadiation and chemotherapy

are limited, because they killboth healthy and canceroustissue. Therapies based on thecharacteristics of the genes in theoriginal, normal celts also have alimited time (months?) in whichto kill the cancer. As time passes,the cancer cells microevolve to beresistant to gene-based therapies.They mutate from siightly mutatedto aggressive cells that retain fewerof the characteristics on which thegene therapy originally focused.Prostate cancer, for example,mutates from near normal tohighly abnormal in appearance inthe five stages that contribute tothe Gleason score. In some cases,advanced prostate cancers generatealmost none of the prostate-specificantigen that describes the cancer.

Vitamin C therapy does nothave a therapeutic time interval,because cancers evolve towardincreased glucose intake andthus toward greater sensitivityto vitamin C. Patients have safelytaken massive doses for periods ofmany years. Vitamin C appears tocontrol early-stage cancer, but thisneeds verification.

Therapy ChoicesSurgery, radiation, and

chemotherapy can generallybe used with vitamin C therapy(Lamson,'^ Stoute'**). Mainlinetherapies can have permanentand undesirable side effects, butvitamin C therapy can sometimesprovide equivalent therapy withoutlong-term side effects. By usingboth conventional and vitamin Ctherapies^^ together, the patientcan often receive the best possibleoutcome.

For cancer prevention, Hofferrecommends his basic regimenwith dosages cut in half or one-fourth. For eariy or slow-growingcancers, Hoffer's regimen maysuffice if carefully monitored.

9 4 TOWNSEND LETTER - AUGUST/SEPTEMBER 2007

Cancer and Vitamin C TherapyFor more advanced or aggressivecancers, surgery and radiationmay be required along withHoffer's regimen augmented withenough vitamin C to almost causediarrhea, plus other vitaminsand supplements as mentionedabove. In some cases, and withmedical supervision, patientsmay wish to temporarily delaysurgery, radiation, and especiallychemotherapy while using Hoffer'sregimen to see if vitamins controltheir cancer.

Procedures for AdministeringVitamin C

Cameron's initial 50 cancerpatients'^ mostly received IVascorbic acid at 10,000 mg/day,while 17 received only oral vitaminC. Many of his terminal patientsleft the hospital, but their cancersometimes returned if they stoppedtaking oral vitamin C. Hofferprescribed oral vitamin C, othervitamins and supplements, and alow-meat, low-sugar diet. In vitrotests by Riordan^" showed that thelevels of vitamin C required to killvarious cancers were well abovethe serum level easily obtainable byoral vitamin C. He also showed thatvitamin K3 and alpha lipoic acidgreatly improved vitamin C therapy.Riordan and others decided that IVvitamin C was warranted and havetreated patients with a regimensuch as sodium ascorbate at15,000 to 100,000 mg by four-hourIV given one to three times perweek plus oral vitamin C and othersupplements. Results have beengood based on clinical case reports.Hoffer was successful with oral-onlyvitamin C, because he enhanced itwith other supplements and diet.Hickey recommends oral vitaminC together with supplements thatgenerate hydrogen peroxide plusa low-glucose diet. He feels thatpulsed IV vitamin C may kill weakcancer cells while letting strongercells microevolve to be moreaggressive.

AcceptanceVitamin C and supplements have

been effective at controlling cancer,but vitamin C is not officiallyapproved for cancer therapy. USgovernment regulations' require (orrequired) that materials consideredfor chemotherapy testing be lethalforsmallanimalsatdosesof 500mg/kg. This restriction makes testing amillion dollar expense. Money forproperly testing non-patentablevitamin C has been available onlyrarely. M. Stephenson^' has startedan FDA-approved, phase 1 trial of IVascorbate at 50,000 mg four timesper week for prostate cancer. Somequestion the need for expensivetests on safe, well-known vitamins.

In spite ofthe obvious advantagesof Cameron's and Hoffer's cancerregimens, correct randomized testshave not been run. Neither Creagannor Moertel followed Cameron'sregimen. The medical communityrequires that new cancer therapiesbe proven by large, randomized,and preferably double-blind tests.However, surgery, radiation, andchemotherapy were each acceptedin desperation without randomizedtests against each other. Morerecently, new therapies are subjectto testing. Neither radiation norchemotherapy can be givenrandomized and double-blindtests versus each other becauseof the obvious and debilitatingside effects. These therapieswere accepted based on historicexperience.

To require vitamins to pass teststhat radiation and chemotherapieshave not and cannot passdemonstrates questionable logic.Hickey" states: 'The argument thatthe benefits have not been 'proven'is unscientific; such a statementcould always be applied, no matterhow strong the evidence. Indeed,the conventional idea that large-scale ciinicai trials are required isscientifically unsupportable." Thecost of repeating Hoffer's regimenfor a few years is minimal comparedto the value of lives probablysaved.

Drug and vitamin companies,in fairness to their stockholders,cannot run expensive randomizedor double-blind tests onunpatentable vitamins. Perhaps analtruistic philanthropy could fundsuitable tests to demonstrate theability of oral vitamin C to increasepatients' life and comfort andpromote acceptance of vitamin C.

Doctor-Patient RelationsHigh-dose vitamin C cancer

therapy is not approved in the US.The Food and Drug Administrationand state medical boards enforcethis regulation to prevent unsafetherapies from replacing or delayingaccepted therapies. In other words,oncologists are not allowed toprescribe high-dose vitamin C as acancer therapy. If a cancer patientasks his oncologist to prescribevitamin C, the doctor will probably

Nutritional Support for Sports EnduranceYour patients typically prepare for exercise by stretching, warming up,wearing the proper apparel, and drinking water. You can help themaddress the internal demands placed on their bodies during physicalactivity, such as stress on the joints, lactic acid build-up, and increasedoxygen demands, with the following whole food supplements fromStandard Process®; Ligaplex® II, Cataplex® B, and Cardio-Plus®. Call800-558-8740 to order these products or receive additional information."

•These statements have rot been evaluated by the Food and Drug AdminislratJon. These productsare not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease.

TOWNSEND LETTER - AUGUST/SEPTEMBER 200795

say no. The oncologist mightalso say that high-dose vitaminC is unsafe - that is his training.Actually, high-dose vitamin C is safe- far safer than standard therapies.Fortunately, a cancer patient whowants to use Hoffer's therapyhas options. The patient can ask,"Have any of your cancer patientsused high-dose vitamin C and didthey do well?" Some patients havesaid to their doctor: "I plan to usevitamin C." If the doctor showsunderstanding without necessarilyshowing approval, the patient hasa suitable doctor. If the doctorrepeats that vitamin C is unsafe,the patient can ask for scientificevidence.

The patient, for safety, shouldgive the doctor information on all ofhis supplements and dosages evenif the doctor dislikes vitamins. Manypatients also work with nutritionistsor similar professionals to betterunderstand vitamin therapy, itspossible problems and advantages.Many doctors use vitamin C to"strengthen" cancer patients,even though these doctors arenot certified to "treat" cancer. Thecautious choice of words may benecessary for legal reasons. Becausethe vitamins and supplements areeasily available over the counter, apatient could treat his own cancerbut this is risky. Some patients use

vitamin C therapy quietly becausetheir doctor does not approve, butthis too can be risky.

ConclusionAdvanced cancers are

functionally quite similar - theytake in mostly glucose. Hoffer'sregimen with high-dose vitaminC is well demonstrated and safeenough to use now with medicalsupervision. Hoffer's therapy couldbe especially attractive for patientswith rare types of cancer who haveno avaiiabie therapy. Vitamin C maychange cancer from being an acuteterminal disease into chronic one.Further development of Hoffer'sregimen is recommended, and itholds great promise of becomingthe preferred cancer therapy,especially with systemic cancers.

Reagan Houston, MS, PE(Professional Engineer)h@cancertherapies.org600 Carolina Village Rd. #165Hendersonville, North Carolina 28792828-692-3722www.cancertherapies.org.

AcknowledgementsWe thank Abram Hoffer and SteveHickey for extensive commentsand discussion. This work has notreceived financial support.

Reagan Houston, a research chemicalengineer, was leader of a prostate cancersupport group. When his prostate cancerwas diagnosed ten years ago, his PSA, ameasure of the cancer, was eiglit and doublingevery six months - a sign of aggressivecancer. A PSA of four or iess is normal. Hechose intermittent triple hormone therapy(Lupron, Eulexin, and Proscar) and Hoffer-type vitamins, both highly experimental in1997. After one year, he stopped the Lupronand Eulexin but continued the Proscar andvitamins. His PSA has averaged 0.6 for the lasteight years and is now 0.6. He has never hadsurgery, chemotherapy, or radiation of anykind.

Notes1. Benade L, Howard T and Burke D. Synergistic

killings of Ehrlich ascites carcinoma cellsby ascorbate and 3 amino-1, 2. 4-trlazoie.Oncology. l969;23:33-43.

2. Hickey S & Roberts H. Ascorbale. The Science ofVitamin C. United Kingdom: Lightning SourceUK Ltd (ISBN 1-4116-0724-4); 2004.

3. Hoffer A, Pauling L. Hardin Jones biostatistlcalanalysis of mortality data for cohorts of cancerpatients with a large fraction surviving at thetermination of the study and a comparison ofsurvival times of cancer patients receivingiarge regular doses of vitamin C and othernutrients with similar patients not receivingthose doses. J of Orthomolecutar Medicine.1990;5:143-I54.

4. Hoffer A. Vitamin C and Cancer, Discovery,Recovery. Controversy. Kingston. Ontario:Quarry Press; 2000.

5. Cameron E and Pauling L. Cancer and VitaminC. Philadelphia, PA: Camlno Books:1993.

6. Cameron E. A protocol for the use of vitamin Cin the treatment of cancer. Medical Hypotheses.1999:36:190-194.

7. Hoffer A. Letter to R. Houston, [writtencommunication] January 18, 2005.

8. Hickey .S, Roberts H. Cancer Nutrilion andSurvival. United Kingdom: Lightning Source UKLtd; 2004 (ISBN |.4116-6339-x).

9. Houston R. Vitamins Can Kill Cancer. WeslConshohocken, PA: Infinity Publishing; 2006(ISBN 0-7414-3253-6).

10. Stone I. Letter to A. Sient-Gyorgl. Dated August30.1982, downloaded 6/1/2005.

U. Creagan ET. Moertel CG. OTallon JR. et al.Failure of high-dose vitamin C (ascorbic acid)therapy to benefit patients with advancedcancer. New England J of Medicine 1979;3OI:687-690.

12. Moertel CG, Fleming TR. Creagan ET, Rubin J,O'Conneil MJ, Ames MM. High-dose vitaminC versus piacebo in the treatment of patientswith advanced cancer who have had no priorchemotherapy. New England J of Medicine.1985;312:137-41.

13. Chen Q, et al. Pharmacologic ascorbic acidconcentrations selectively kill cancer cells:Action as a pro-drug to deliver hydrogenperoxide to tissues. PNAS- 2005; 102:13604-13609.

14. Ely JT.GIycemic modulation of tumor tolerance.J of Orthomolecular Medicine. 19%;ll(l):23-34.

15. Cathcart RF. Vitamin C, titrating to boweltolerance, anascorbla. and acute inducedscurvy. Medical Hypotheses- 1981;7:1359-1376.

16. Casciari JJ, et al. Cytotoxicity of ascorbate,lipoic acid and other antioxidants in hollowfiber in vitro tumours. British Journal of Cancer.2001:84:1544-1550.

17. Lamson DW. Brignall MS. Antioxidants andcancer therapy II: quick reference guide.Alternative Medical Review. 2000; 5(2): 152-163.

18. Stoute JA. The use of vitamin C withchemotherapy in cancer treatment: anannotated bibliography. J of OrthomotecularMedicine. 2004:19(4):198-245.

19. Cameron E, Campbell A. The orthomoleculartreatment of cancer IL Clinical trial of high-doseascorbic acid supplements in advanced humancancer. Chem.-Bio. Interactions. 1974;9:285-315.

20. Riordan NH, Riordan HD. Meng X, U Y, JacksonJA. intravenous ascorbate as a tumor cytotoxicchemotherapeutic agent. Medical Hypotheses.I995;44:2O7-213.

21. Lis CG. FDA approves trial of intravenousvitamin C for anti-cancer therapy. LifeExtension. 2007;May;18. ,

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