Possible Interaction: Fluorouracil and Vitamin C

“A combination of vitamin C with 5-Fu or cisplatin exerted a significantly enhanced cytotoxic effect compared to both drugs individually.”

“Our data demonstrate that vitamin C enhances the antitumor activity of 5-Fu and cisplatin, in part by inhibiting translocation of NF-κB and AP-1, and sensitizes cancer cells to drug-induced cell death.”

“Pretreatment with vitamin C inhibited 5-Fu or cisplatin induced NF-κB nuclear translocation and DNA binding activity, but vitamin C had no effect on IκB-α protein levels.”

“In the case of the chemoresistant cell line, only a high concentration of vitamin C increased the cytotoxicity of 5-FU.”

“ Vitamin C itself had no antiproliferative effect on the fibroblasts, but increased the anticancer effect of 5-FU dose-dependently.”

“… 5-FU … vitamin C exerted a significantly enhanced apoptotic effect on the mouse lymphoma cell line, whereas for the HEp-2 cell line this effect was less … with 5-FU chemotherapy enhances the chemoresponsiveness of cancer cells and serves as a potential sensitizer, especially in chemo-resistant cell lines.”

“ AA and 5-FU act synergistically in vitro just for longer incubation times, however, in vivo showed no benefit compared to 5-FU alone.”