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NewsYour daily vitamin C might do more than fight colds. A phase 2 trial found that while vitamin C didn't slow abnormal blood cell growth in people with precancerous or low-risk blood cancers, it was tied to fewer deaths, less inflammation, and fewer serious complications. Researchers say a larger phase 3 trial is needed before any treatment recommendations can be made.
Vitamin C is best known for immune support, but a new clinical trial hints it could play a role in blood cancer prevention. The EVITA trial — a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled phase 2 study — enrolled 109 participants in Denmark and the US, all of whom had either a precancerous blood disorder or a low-risk blood cancer. Half took 1,000 mg of oral vitamin C daily for 12 months; the other half received a placebo.
The primary goal — slowing abnormal cell growth — wasn't achieved. But the secondary findings turned heads. Vitamin C was linked to favorable shifts in inflammatory signaling and fewer serious complications like anemia, pneumonia, and internal bleeding. Most strikingly, an exploratory analysis found that only 11 deaths occurred in the vitamin C group vs. 24 in the placebo group over a median follow-up of nearly 3 years.
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Why it matters: These results are preliminary and exploratory — not yet strong enough to change clinical practice. But they provide a compelling rationale for a larger phase 3 trial to determine whether vitamin C could become a low-cost, accessible tool to intercept leukemia development in high-risk patients.
