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BIRMINGHAM, ALABAMA. It is now almost 30 years since Drs. Pauling and Cameron published their
ground-breaking studies concerning the benefits of vitamin C supplementation in advanced cancer. Their
findings were originally dismissed by the medical community, but new evidence supporting their conclusion
continues to surface. For example, lung cancer patients have been found to have lower blood plasma
concentrations of vitamin C (ascorbic acid) and also consume less vitamin C in their diet than do healthy
individuals.
Researchers at the University of Alabama now report that the vitamin C concentration in cancerous lung
tissue is much higher than in adjacent healthy tissue. They believe the body tries to concentrate vitamin C
in the diseased tissue because it helps to fight the cancer. The study involved 22 patients who had
developed cancer (squamous cell carcinoma) of the lung or larynx. Most of the patients had been heavy
smokers prior to surgery. The researchers measured the concentration of ascorbic acid in the cancerous
and healthy issue and found a marked difference. The median concentration in cancerous tissue was 483
nanograms/mg of protein versus only 72 nanograms/mg of protein in healthy tissue. The researchers also
measured the degree of methylation of DNA in diseased and healthy tissues. Again, they found a very
significant difference. The radiolabeled methyl incorporation in cancerous tissue was 31,416 counts per
minute per microgram DNA versus only 11,444 counts per minute per microgram DNA in healthy tissue. A
high degree of DNA methylation is believed to be important in fighting cancer. The researchers conclude
that the body's natural defense mechanism concentrates vitamin C in cancerous lung tissue in order to
increase DNA methylation and thereby fight the cancer. They point out that other research has shown that
breast cancer tumors also tend to have higher vitamin C levels than adjacent healthy tissue.
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