Gore GP practice dumps controversial Vitamin C therapy

Photo: Getty Images
Photo: Getty Images
Gore Medical Centre will be phasing out vitamin C infusions and the clinic will shut down in October this year.

Vitamin C infusions involve a patient receiving high doses of the vitamin intravenously. The benefits are debated.

Proponents of the practice point to studies in the 1970s which suggested the vitamin may be toxic to cancer cells.

However, these were later found to have flaws.

Earlier this month, University of Otago professor of cancer medicine Chris Jackson expressed his concern about the treatment and alternative medicines in general.

Prof Jackson had a previous patient who died due to a high dose of administered intravenous vitamin C leading to kidney stones and eventual renal failure.

Gore Medical Centre had previously advertised the service on its website, stating it may be beneficial for cancer, among other conditions.

The page was taken down earlier this week and the vitamin C infusion practice is no longer listed or mentioned on its website.

Practice manager Susan Jones said in a statement she agreed with Prof Jackson.

Vitamin C was not promoted in the practice as a cure for cancer, but rather as a complementary treatment for cancer patients for "quality of life symptoms".

Patients were encouraged to undergo conventional treatments and were informed about the lack of efficacy of vitamin C in treating cancer, Mrs Jones said.

The clinic will be discontinued in October, as it is run by one of the clinic’s general practitioners who is retiring, and will not be accepting new referrals in the meantime.

Due to this and potential confusion over wording on the web page, any information regarding the clinic was removed from the website.

The discontinuation had nothing to do with Prof Jackson’s comments, and was instead made months ago following the GP’s announcement of retirement.

Mrs Jones stated it was difficult to quantify the number of people the IV clinic served, and also a variety of infusions an individual could receive.

gerrit.doppenberg@odt.co.nz