Vitamins can double the survival time in cancer patients

According to a new study publicised in the July issue of the scientific journal “Lung Cancer”, regular use of vitamin and mineral supplements helps cancer patients live longer and better. The study shows how men and women with non-small cell lung cancer are able to double their average survival time as well as improve their quality of living considerably by taking vitamin and mineral supplements starting when they receive their cancer diagnoses.
The researchers wrote; “...thepresent study provides sufficiently compelling data to invite further investigation of vitamins/mineral supplements as adjunctive therapy for cancer patients in a clinical trial setting and to underscore the need for patients to participate in current ongoing trials.” (83)
26% lower risk of death
The researchers where surprised to find that 63% of the 1,129 participants, who all participated in a large research project (The Mayo Clinic Lung Cancer Cohort), took vitamin and mineral supplements. The study participants supplied the researchers with the necessary data by filling out surveys with detailed information regarding their intake of vitamins and minerals, their cancer treatments and disease progression, as well as their quality of life six months after their cancer diagnoses as well as their quality of life yearly until the end of 2002.
The average survival time for those who used vitamin and mineral supplements was 4.3 years, as opposed to the 2.0 years in those who did not take supplements. After adjusting for a multitude of factors, the estimated death rate in the supplement users was 26% lower than in those who did not take a supplement. The quality of life was measured with the help an official rubric called LCSS (the Lung Cancer Symptom Scale). Patients in the group which used vitamin and mineral supplements had much better results than those who did not.
Source: Lung Cancer, 2005; 49: 77-84