The Positive Impact of Vitamin C (Ascorbic Acid) Utilisation in Cancer Treatment: A Scoping Review of Published Articles From the Perspective of the in Vitro Studies
Main Article Content
Abstract
Survival benefit of patients with advanced cancer was reported with intravenous vitamin C administration. Nevertheless, a recent systematic review failed to support the clinically use of vitamin C in cancer patients due to the diversity of interventions and cancer type. This study aimed to provide a scoping review of vitamin C utilisation and its impact on cancer treatment from the perspective of in vitro studies. The review was conducted using predefined search terms in three scientific databases. 44 articles were retrieved with a total of 15 cancer types being studied from 2015 to 2020. The findings were classified into primary and secondary outcome. The primary outcome refers to chief consequences of vitamin C treatment, while the secondary outcome denotes the additional advantages generated as a result of the primary outcome, which occurs both in monotherapy and combination therapy. This review discussed the major mechanism of vitamin C as anti-cancer and its relation with the outcomes.
Downloads
Article Details
References
World Health Organization. Cancer. 2018.
Bukowski K, Kciuk M, Kontek R. Mechanisms of multidrug resistance in cancer chemotherapy. Int J Mol Sci. 2020;(21).
Padayatty SJ, Levine M. Vitamin C physiology: the know and the unknown and goldilocks. Oral Dis. 2016;22(6):463–93.
He H-Y, Liu M-Z, Zhang Y-L, Zhang W. Vitamin pharmacogenomics: new insight into individual differences in diseases and drug responses. Genomics Proteomics Bioinformatics. 2017;15(2):94–100.
Davis-Yadley AH, Malafa MP. Vitamins in pancreatic cancer: a review of underlying mechanisms and future applications. Adv Nutr. 2015 Nov;6(6):774–802.
Unlu A, Kirca O, Ozdogan M, Nayır E. High-dose vitamin C and cancer. J Oncol Sci. 2016 Jan;1:10– 2.
Cameron E, Pauling L. Supplemental ascorbate in the supportive treatment of cancer: Reevaluation of prolongation of survival times in terminal human cancer. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 1978;75(9):4538– 42.
Creagan ET, Moertel CG, O’Fallon JR, Schutt AJ, O’Connell MJ, Rubin J, et al. Failure of high-dose vitamin C (ascorbic acid) therapy to benefit patients with advanced cancer. A controlled trial. N Engl J Med. 1979 Sep;301(13):687–90.
Shenoy N, Creagan E, Witzig T, Levine M. Ascorbic Acid in Cancer Treatment: Let the Phoenix Fly. Cancer Cell. 2018 Nov;34(5):700–6.
Lykkesfeldt J, Tveden-Nyborg P. The pharmacokinetics of vitamin C. Nutrients. 2019;11(10).
Carr AC, Cook J. Intravenous Vitamin C for Cancer Therapy – Identifying the Current Gaps in Our Knowledge. Front Physiol. 2018 Aug;9.
Roberts BM, Fullerton DR, Elliott SL, Roberts BM, Fullerton DR, Elliott SL. the Intrinsic and Extrinsic Pathways Pathways. Bios. 2015;86(3):134–43.
Vissers MCM, Das AB. Potential mechanisms of action for vitamin C in cancer: Reviewing the evidence. Front Physiol. 2018;9(JUL):1–13.
van Gorkom GNY, Lookermans EL, Van Elssen CHMJ, Bos GMJ. The effect of vitamin C (Ascorbic acid) in the treatment of patients with cancer: A systematic review. Nutrients. 2019;11(5).
Levac D, Colquhoun H, O’Brien KK. Scoping studies: advancing the methodology. Implement Sci. 2010;5(1):69.
Bober P, Alexovic M, Talian I, Tomkova Z, Viscorova Z, Benckova M, et al. Proteomic analysis of the vitamin C effect on the doxorubicin cytotoxicity in the MCF-7 breast cancer cell line. J Cancer Res Clin Oncol. 2017;143(1):35–42.
Wu C-W, Liu H-C, Yu Y-L, Hung Y-T, Wei C-W, Yiang G-T. Combined treatment with vitamin C and methotrexate inhibits triple-negative breast cancer cell growth by increasing H2O2 accumulation and activating caspase-3 and p38 pathways. Oncol Rep. 2017 Mar;37(4):2177–84.
Lee SJ, Jeong JH, Lee IH, Lee J, Jung JH, Park HY, et al. Effect of high-dose Vitamin C combined with anti-cancer treatment on breast cancer cells. Anticancer Res. 2019;39(2):751–8.
Sinha BK, van ‘t Erve TJ, Kumar A, Bortner CD, Motten AG, Mason RP. Synergistic enhancement of topotecan-induced cell death by ascorbic acid in human breast MCF-7 tumor cells. Free Radic Biol Med. 2017;113:406–12.
Zeng LH, Wang QM, Feng LY, Ke YD, Xu QZ, Wei AY, et al. High-dose vitamin C suppresses the invasion and metastasis of breast cancer cells via inhibiting epithelial-mesenchymal transition. Onco Targets Ther. 2019;12:7405–13.
Gan L, Camarena V, Mustafi S, Wang G. Vitamin C inhibits triple-negative breast cancer metastasis by affecting the expression of YAP1 and synaptopodin 2. Nutrients. 2019;11(12):1–11.
Sant DW, Mustafi S, Gustafson CB, Chen J, Slingerland JM, Wang G. Vitamin C promotes apoptosis in breast cancer cells by increasing TRAIL expression. Sci Rep. 2018;8(1):1–11.
Miles SL, Fischer AP, Joshi SJ, Niles RM. Ascorbic acid and ascorbate-2-phosphate decrease HIF activity and malignant properties of human melanoma cells. BMC Cancer. 2015 Dec;15(1):867.
Shin H, Nam A, Song KH, Lee K, Rebhun RB, Seo KW. Anticancer effects of high-dose ascorbate on canine melanoma cell lines. Vet Comp Oncol. 2018;16(4):616–21.
Mustafi S, Sant DW, Liu Z-J, Wang G. Ascorbate induces apoptosis in melanoma cells by suppressing Clusterin expression. Sci Rep. 2017 Dec;7(1):3671.
Yang G, Yan Y, Ma Y, Yang Y. Vitamin C at high concentrations induces cytotoxicity in malignant melanoma but promotes tumor growth at low concentrations. Mol Carcinog. 2017;56(8):1965– 76.
Mustafi S, Camarena V, Volmar CH, Huff TC, Sant DW, Brothers SP, et al. Vitamin C sensitizes melanoma to BET inhibitors. Cancer Res. 2018;78(2):572–83.
Gustafson CB, Yang C, Dickson KM, Shao H, Van Booven D, Harbour JW, et al. Epigenetic reprogramming of melanoma cells by vitamin C treatment. Clin Epigenetics. 2015;7(1):1–11.
Chen XY, Chen Y, Qu CJ, Pan ZH, Qin Y, Zhang X, et al. Vitamin C induces human melanoma A375 cell apoptosis via Bax- And Bcl-2- mediated mitochondrial pathways. Oncol Lett. 2019;18(4):3880–6.
Pires AS, Marques CR, Encarnação JC, Abrantes AM, Marques IA, Laranjo M, et al. Ascorbic acid chemosensitizes colorectal cancer cells and synergistically inhibits tumor growth. Front Physiol. 2018;9(JUL):1–14.
Cho S, Chae JS, Shin H, Shin Y, Song H, Kim Y, et al. Hormetic dose response to L-ascorbic acid as an anti-cancer drug in colorectal cancer cell lines according to SVCT-2 expression. Sci Rep. 2018 Dec;8(1):11372.
Jung S-A, Lee D-H, Moon J-H, Hong S-W, Shin J-S, Hwang IY, et al. L-Ascorbic acid can abrogate SVCT-2-dependent cetuximab resistance mediated by mutant KRAS in human colon cancer cells. Free Radic Biol Med. 2016 Jun;95:200–8.
Pires AS, Marques CR, Encarnação JC, Abrantes AM, Mamede AC, Laranjo M, et al. Ascorbic acid and colon cancer: an oxidative stimulus to cell death depending on cell profile. Eur J Cell Biol. 2016;95(6–7):208–18.
Gong EY, Shin YJ, Hwang IY, Kim JH, Kim SM, Moon JH, et al. Combined treatment with vitamin C and sulindac synergistically induces p53- and ROS-dependent apoptosis in human colon cancer cells. Toxicol Lett. 2016;258:126–33.
Tian W, Wang Z, Tang N, Li J, Liu Y, Chu W. Ascorbic Acid Sensitizes Colorectal Carcinoma to the Cytotoxicity of Arsenic Trioxide via Promoting Reactive Oxygen Species-Dependent Apoptosis and Pyroptosis. 2020;11(February):1–13.
Gerecke C, Schumacher F, Edlich A, Wetzel A, Yealland G, Neubert LK, et al. Vitamin C promotes decitabine or azacytidine induced DNA hydroxymethylation and subsequent reactivation of the epigenetically silenced tumour suppressor CDKN1A in colon cancer cells. Oncotarget. 2018;9(67):32822–40.
Ohwada R, Ozeki Y, Saitoh Y. High-dose ascorbic acid induces carcinostatic effects through hydrogen peroxide and superoxide anion radical generation-induced cell death and growth arrest in human tongue carcinoma cells. Free Radic Res. 2017;51(7–8):684–92.
Baek MW, Cho HS, Kim SH, Kim WJ, Jung JY. Ascorbic acid induces necrosis in human laryngeal squamous cell carcinoma via ROS, PKC, and calcium signaling. J Cell Physiol. 2017;232(2):417– 25.
Zhou J, Chen C, Chen X, Fei Y, Jiang L, Wang G. Vitamin C Promotes Apoptosis and Cell Cycle Arrest in Oral Squamous Cell Carcinoma. 2020;10(June):1–11.
O’Leary BR, Houwen FK, Johnson CL, Allen BG, Mezhir JJ, Berg DJ, et al. Pharmacological ascorbate as an adjuvant for enhancing radiation-chemotherapy responses in gastric adenocarcinoma. Radiat Res. 2018;189(5):456.
Lim JY, Kim D, Kim BR, Jun JS, Yeom JS, Park JS, et al. Vitamin C induces apoptosis in AGS cells via production of ROS of mitochondria. Oncol Lett. 2016;12(5):4270–6.
Ghavami G, Sardari S. Synergistic Effect of Vitamin C with Cisplatin for Inhibiting Proliferation of Gastric Cancer Cells. 2020;24(March):119–27.
Roberts BM, Fullerton DR, Elliott SL. High concentrations of L-ascorbic acid (Vitamin C) induces apoptosis in a human cervical cancer cell line (HeLa) through the intrinsic and extrinsic pathways. Bios. 2015 Sep;86(3):134–43.
Leekha A, Gurjar BS, Tyagi A, Rizvi MA, Verma AK. Vitamin C in synergism with cisplatin induces cell death in cervical cancer cells through altered redox cycling and p53 upregulation. J Cancer Res Clin Oncol. 2016;142(12):2503–14.
Chen G, Wu T, Liu S, Chen S, Chen G, Wu C. Mechanisms and Applications of the Anti-cancer Effect of Pharmacological Ascorbic Acid in Cervical Cancer Cells. 2020;10(September):1–15.
Yiang G-T, Chen J-N, Wu T-K, Wang H-F, Hung Y-T, Chang W-J, et al. Ascorbic acid inhibits TPA- induced HL-60 cell differentiation by decreasing cellular H2O2 and ERK phosphorylation. Mol Med Rep. 2015 Oct;12(4):5501–7.
Shenoy N, Bhagat T, Nieves E, Stenson M, Lawson J, Choudhary GS, et al. Upregulation of TET activity with ascorbic acid induces epigenetic modulation of lymphoma cells. Blood Cancer J. 2017 Jul;7(7):e587.
Hosokawa Y, Saga R, Monzen S, Terashima S, Tsuruga E. Ascorbic acid does not reduce the anticancer effect of radiotherapy. Biomed Reports. 2017;6(1):103–7.
Fernandes G, Barone AW, Dziak R. The effect of ascorbic acid on bone cancer cells in vitro. Winder S, editor. Cogent Biol. 2017 Jan;3(1).
Oka N, Komuro A, Amano H, Dash S, Honda M, Ota K, et al. Ascorbate sensitizes human osteosarcoma cells to the cytostatic effects of cisplatin. 2020;(June):1–12.
Sajadian SO, Tripura C, Samani FS, Ruoss M, Dooley S, Baharvand H, et al. Vitamin C enhances epigenetic modifications induced by 5-azacytidine and cell cycle arrest in the hepatocellular carcinoma cell lines HLE and Huh7. Clin Epigenetics. 2016 Dec;8(1):46.
Rouleau L, Antony AN, Bisetto S, Newberg A, Doria C, Levine M, et al. Synergistic effects of ascorbate and sorafenib in hepatocellular carcinoma: New insights into ascorbate cytotoxicity. Free Radic Biol Med. 2016;95:308–22.
Lee KE, Hahm E, Bae S, Kang JS, Lee WJ. The enhanced tumor inhibitory effects of gefitinib and L-ascorbic acid combination therapy in non- small cell lung cancer cells. Oncol Lett. 2017 Jul;14(1):276–82.
Wei X, Xu Y, Xu FF, Chaiswing L, Schnell D, Noel T, et al. RelB expression determines the differential effects of ascorbic acid in normal and cancer cells. Cancer Res. 2017 Mar;77(6):1345–56.
Alexander MS, Wilkes JG, Schroeder SR, Buettner GR, Wagner BA, Du J, et al. Pharmacologic ascorbate reduces radiation-induced normal tissue toxicity and enhances tumor radiosensitization in pancreatic cancer. Cancer Res. 2018;78(24):6838– 51.
Gokturk D, Kelebek H, Ceylan S, Yilmaz DM. The effect of ascorbic acid over the etoposide- and temozolomide-mediated cytotoxicity in glioblastoma cell culture: a molecular study. Turk Neurosurg. 2018;28(1):13–8.
Somparn N, Kukongviriyapan V, Saenthaweesuk S. Antiproliferative and apoptotic effects of high-dose vitamin C in cholangiocarcinoma cell line. Trop J Pharm Res. 2018;17(6):1043–8.
Wang G, Yin T, Wang Y. In vitro and in vivo assessment of high-dose vitamin C against murine tumors. Exp Ther Med. 2016;12(5):3058–62.
Hosokawa Y, Monzen S, Yoshino H, Terashima S, Nakano M, Toshima K, et al. Effects of X-ray irradiation in combination with ascorbic acid on tumor control. Mol Med Rep. 2015;12(4):5449– 54.
Wilkes JG, O’Leary BR, Du J, Klinger AR, Sibenaller ZA, Doskey CM, et al. Pharmacologic ascorbate (P-AscH-) suppresses hypoxia-inducible Factor-1α (HIF-1α) in pancreatic adenocarcinoma. Clin Exp Metastasis. 2018 Feb;35(1–2):37–51.
Jung SA, Lee DH, Moon JH, Hong SW, Shin JS, Hwang IY, et al. L-Ascorbic acid can abrogate SVCT-2-dependent cetuximab resistance mediated by mutant KRAS in human colon cancer cells. Free Radic Biol Med. 2016;95:200–8.
Mastrangelo D, Pelosi E, Castelli G, Lo-Coco F, Testa U. Mechanisms of anti-cancer effects of ascorbate: Cytotoxic activity and epigenetic modulation. Blood Cells, Mol Dis. 2018 Mar;69:57–64.
Doskey CM, Buranasudja V, Wagner BA, Wilkes JG, Du J, Cullen JJ, et al. Tumor cells have decreased ability to metabolize H2O2: Implications for pharmacological ascorbate in cancer therapy. Redox Biol. 2016;10:274–84.
Ribatti D, Tamma R, Annese T. Epithelial- Mesenchymal Transition in Cancer: A Historical Overview. Transl Oncol. 2020;13(6):100773.