Exploring the effects of chronic vitamin C deficiency in a mouse model of Her2-positive breast cancer

Abstract

Vitamin C (VC) is an antioxidant that humans must include in their diet to prevent scurvy. High intake of VC may reduce the incidence of some types of cancer, and high-dose intravenous VC is an alternative cancer therapy. In this study, we used a genetically modified mouse to model the effects of chronic VC deficiency in breast cancer. Mice were fed either a low-dose or normal-dose VC diet, and were monitored for cancer development. We found that there was no difference in tumour characteristics between the mice that received low-dose versus normal VC supplementation. The results of this study suggest that chronic VC deficiency may not have an effect in this specific type of breast cancer.