Curie Brief
Turn on cookies to sign in
Signing in saves your progress to your Curie account. We can only do that with cookies on — turn them on to continue.
News
Could a daily vitamin C supplement help keep leukemia at bay? A phase 2 trial called EVITA found that while vitamin C didn't slow abnormal cell growth in people with pre-cancerous blood disorders, it was linked to fewer serious complications, favorable changes in inflammation, and — notably — a 65% lower risk of death over roughly three years of follow-up.
A randomized, double-blind phase 2 trial called EVITA tested whether daily oral vitamin C (1,000 mg) could slow the progression of pre-cancerous blood disorders — specifically clonal cytopenia of undetermined significance (CCUS) and low-risk myelodysplastic syndrome (MDS) — both of which can evolve into acute myeloid leukemia (AML). The trial enrolled 109 adults across the U.S. and Denmark, none of whom were on active anticancer therapy, and more than half were vitamin C deficient at enrollment.
The primary endpoint — clonal growth rate — showed no significant difference between the vitamin C and placebo groups. But the secondary findings turned heads: the vitamin C group had fewer serious adverse events, favorable shifts in inflammatory cytokine levels, and in an exploratory analysis, a dramatically lower risk of death.
By the Numbers
Why it matters: There is currently no established treatment for CCUS or low-risk MDS — most patients are managed with watch-and-wait. Vitamin C is inexpensive, widely available, and well-tolerated, making it a potentially game-changing intervention if a larger phase 3 trial confirms these survival findings.
