Safety of Antioxidants During GYN Cancer Care

Summary

It is known that people with cancer are using antioxidant vitamins at high rates. It is not known if these vitamins are safe to use during cancer treatment. It is not known if common vitamins and minerals used by many cancer patients will interfere with cancer treatments by reducing the effectiveness of the cancer therapy. Preliminary studies that look at the addition of antioxidants during cancer therapy show us that antioxidants could play a significant role in the management of cancer. Antioxidants are vitamins and other nutrients that help to decrease inflammation in the body by stopping free radicals or oxidants. Common antioxidants include vitamins E, C, and A, beta-carotene, and glutathione. Some doctors who treat cancer are now using antioxidants with chemotherapy while others believe they should not be used with cancer treatment. The purpose of this study is to try and understand if it is safe efficacious to add antioxidant nutritional supplements to traditional chemotherapy and/or radiation therapy during the treatment of cancer.

Timeline

Start

2005-09

Primary completion

2006-12

Completion

2006-12

Drugs

Indications