Apatone Found Effective Against Prostate Cancer

The ongoing search for anti-cancer chemotherapeutic agents has borne fruit with the completion of the first [U.S.] Food and Drugs Administration (FDA)-approved human clinical trial of Apatone.

Apatone is comprised of the naturally occurring liquid crystals vitamins C and K3. They function together to weaken tumor cells and render them more susceptible to chemotherapy or radiation. They do this through a process known as oxidative stress, with K3 adding oxygen to the tumor and vitamin C removing it. This constant in-and-out weakens the tumor, making the chemotherapy or radiation more potent. This type of drug treatment is based on the Norton-Simon hypothesis, which suggests that tumors given less time to regrow between chemotherapy treatments are more likely to be destroyed.
Apatone was licensed in 2004 to the biotechnology company IC-MedTech, Inc. (San Diego, CA; USA), and the first clinical trial began in 2005 to evaluate the drug in prostate cancer patients. The clinical studies were conducted at Summa Health System (Akron, OH, USA; www.summahealth.org).

Throughout the trial, investigators monitored prostate-specific antigen (PSA) levels, PSA velocity and PSA doubling times. Although PSA is a protein normally produced by the prostate gland, individuals with prostate cancer have increased levels. PSA velocity is the change of PSA levels over time and PSA doubling time is the time it takes for a patient's PSA level to double.

"The results of the trial are very promising,” said Dr. James Jamison, team leader at Summa Health System. "Sixteen of the 17 patients responded positively to the Apatone and 13 showed a decrease in PSA velocity and an increase in PSA doubling time. At the end of the treatment period, 15 patients opted to continue treatment. The bottom line is: Apatone selectively targets and kills tumor cells using non-toxic biochemistry that protects surrounding healthy tissue.”


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