Intravenous Vitamin C Administration Improved Blood Cell Counts and Health-Related Quality of Life of Patient with History of Relapsed Acute Myeloid Leukaemia

A 52-year-old female presented to Integrated Health Options Clinic in October 2014 with a history of relapsed acute myeloid leukaemia (AML, diagnosed in 2009 and relapsed in 2014). Intravenous(IV) vitamin C therapy was initiated (in 2014) following completion of chemotherapy as an alternative to haematopoietic stem cell transplantation. IV vitamin C was administered twice weekly at a dose of 70 g/infusion. Within 4 weeks of initiation of IV vitamin C therapy, there was a dramatic improvement in the patient’s blood indices with platelet cell counts increasing from 25 × 10⁹/L to 196 × 10⁹/L and white blood cell counts increasing from 0.29 × 10⁹/L to 4.0 × 10⁹/L, with further improvements observed over the next 18 months. Furthermore, there was a clear and sustained improvement in the patient’s health-related quality of life scores assessed using a validated questionnaire. She has remained healthy and in complete remission until the present day. This case study highlights the benefits of IV vitamin C as a supportive therapy for previously relapsed AML.

Daily intake and urinary excretion of genistein and daidzein by infants fed soy- or dairy-based infant formulas

Our aims were to measure isoflavone intake from soy- and dairy-based infant formulas and breast milk and to assess the ability of infants to digest and absorb soy isoflavones by measuring daily urinary excretion rates. We recruited 29 infants: 4 received soy-based formula and 25 received dairy-based formula. We collected pooled urine samples from 3-5 disposable diapers worn during a 24-h period and developed and validated methods for extracting isoflavones from the diapers. Infants were studied every 1 or 2 wk, starting at 2-6 wk of age and continuing until 16 wk. Only soy-based formulas contained isoflavones in concentrations detectable by HPLC (limits: 0.05 mg/L for liquids and 0.1 mg/kg for solids). Soy-based formulas provided a mean (+/-SEM) daily dose of isoflavones (genistein plus daidzein) of 3.2 +/- 0.2 mg/kg body wt, which remained fairly constant (CV: 12%) regardless of age < or = 16 wk. Isoflavones were measurable in all samples from soy-fed infants, but not in urine from dairy-fed infants. Daily isoflavone excretion rates varied little among infants [range of mean individual values (mg x kg(-1) d(-1)): daidzein, 0.37 +/- 0.03 to 0.58 +/- 0.06; genistein, 0.15 +/- 0.03 to 0.32 +/- 0.04] and did not change with age < or = 16 wk. The mean percentage of the daily intake recovered in the urine of soy-fed infants was 38 +/- 4% for daidzein and 13 +/- 3% for genistein, and remained constant with age. These values are similar to those for adults and indicate that young infants are able to digest, absorb, and excrete genistein and daidzein from soy-based formulas as efficiently as do adults consuming soy products.

Phytoestrogens in soy-based infant foods: concentrations, daily intake, and possible biological effects

Exposure to estrogenic compounds may pose a developmental hazard to infants. Soy products, which contain the phytoestrogens, genistein and daidzein, are becoming increasingly popular as infant foods. To begin to evaluate the potential of the phytoestrogens in these products to affect infants, we measured total genistein and daidzein contents of commercially available soy-based infant formulas, infant cereals, dinners, and rusks. We also assayed phytoestrogens in dairy-based formulas and in breast milk from omnivorous or vegetarian mothers. In most cases, the glucoside forms of the phytoestrogens were hydrolyzed before separation by HPLC. Mean (+/-SEM) total genistein and daidzein contents in four soy infant formulas were 87+/-3 and 49+/-2 microg/g, respectively. The phytoestrogen content of cereals varied with brand, with genistein ranging from 3-287 microg/g and daidzein from 2-276 microg/g. By contrast, no phytoestrogens were detected in dairy-based infant formulas or in human breast milk, irrespective of the mother's diet (detection limit = 0.05 microg/ml). When fed according to the manufacturer's instruction, soy formulas provide the infant with a daily dose rate of total isoflavones (i.e., genistein + daidzein) of approximately 3 mg/kg body weight, which is maintained at a fairly constant level between 0-4 months of age. Supplementing the diet of 4-month-old infants with a single daily serving of cereal can increase their isoflavone intake by over 25%, depending on the brand chosen. This rate of isoflavone intake is much greater than that shown in adult humans to alter reproductive hormones. Since the available evidence suggests that infants can digest and absorb dietary phytoestrogens in active forms and since neonates are generally more susceptible than adults to perturbations of the sex steroid milieu, we suggest that it would be highly desirable to study the effects of soy isoflavones on steroid-dependent developmental processes in human babies.