NCT03682029

Brief Summary

The primary purpose of this multi-centre, randomized, placebo-controlled, double-blind phase II study is to investigate if oral vitamin C may change the biology of low-risk myeloid malignancies; i.e., clonal cytopenia of undetermined significance (CCUS), low-risk myelodysplastic syndromes (MDS), and chronic myelomonocytic leukemia (CMML)-0/1 by reversing the epigenetic changes characteristic of these disease entities. The epigenetic regulator TET2 is the gene most often affected in CCUS. Preclinical studies have shown that active demethylation by the TET enzymes is dependent on vitamin C, and the investigators and collaborators have shown that plasma vitamin C levels are exceedingly low in hematological cancer patients but are easily corrected by oral vitamin C. This study is part of an array of EVITA studies aimed at clarifying whether the standard of care of patients with myeloid malignancies should be changed and oral vitamin C supplement added to the treatment recommendations.

Trial Health

58
Monitor

Trial Health Score

Automated assessment based on enrollment pace, timeline, and geographic reach

Trial has exceeded expected completion date
Enrollment
109

participants targeted

Target at P50-P75 for not_applicable

Timeline
Completed

Started Nov 2017

Longer than P75 for not_applicable

Geographic Reach
2 countries

5 active sites

Status
active not recruiting

Health score is calculated from publicly available data and should be used for screening purposes only.

Trial Relationships

Click on a node to explore related trials.

Study Timeline

Key milestones and dates

Study Start

First participant enrolled

November 21, 2017

Completed
10 months until next milestone

First Submitted

Initial submission to the registry

September 20, 2018

Completed
4 days until next milestone

First Posted

Study publicly available on registry

September 24, 2018

Completed
5 years until next milestone

Primary Completion

Last participant's last visit for primary outcome

September 27, 2023

Completed
2 years until next milestone

Study Completion

Last participant's last visit for all outcomes

September 27, 2025

Completed
Last Updated

April 17, 2024

Status Verified

April 1, 2024

Enrollment Period

5.9 years

First QC Date

September 20, 2018

Last Update Submit

April 16, 2024

Conditions

Keywords

Clonal Cytopenia of Undetermined SignificanceMyelodysplastic SyndromesChronic Myelomonocytic LeukemiaLow-Risk Myeloid MalignanciesVitamin CEpigeneticsTET2Randomized, Placebo-Controlled TrialClinical Study

Outcome Measures

Primary Outcomes (1)

  • Median Change from Baseline in Variant Allele Frequency at 12 Months

    Median change from baseline to 12 months in mutant allele burden as measured by the variant allele frequency (VAF) and number of mutations in the vitC group vs. the placebo group.

    At baseline and at 12 months

Secondary Outcomes (9)

  • Mean Change from Baseline in 5-hmC/5-mC Level at 3 Months and 12 months

    At baseline and at 3 months and 12 months

  • Mean Change from Baseline in 5-mC at Selected Sites at 12 Months

    At baseline and at 12 months

  • Mean Change from Baseline in H3K9 Methylation at Selected Sites at 12 Months

    At baseline and at 12 months

  • Mean Change from Baseline in Plasma Cytokine Levels at 12 Months

    At baseline and at 12 months

  • Mean Change from Baseline in mRNA Levels of Selected Genes at 12 Months

    At baseline and at 12 months

  • +4 more secondary outcomes

Study Arms (2)

Vitamin C

EXPERIMENTAL

Vitamin C (ascorbic acid) 500 mg/capsule. Ingestion of 2 capsules (1000 mg) daily for 12 months.

Dietary Supplement: Vitamin C (ascorbic acid)

Placebo

PLACEBO COMPARATOR

Placebo capsule. Ingestion of 2 capsules daily for 12 months. Placebo will be prepared as capsules that look and taste identical to the vitamin C supplement capsules. The content of the placebo is lactose, potato starch, gelatin, magnesium stearate, and talc.

Other: Placebo

Interventions

Vitamin C (ascorbic acid)DIETARY_SUPPLEMENT

Monotherapy with oral vitamin C supplementation to elevate plasma vitamin C level to the upper end of the physiological range.

Vitamin C
PlaceboOTHER

Placebo

Placebo

Eligibility Criteria

Age18 Years+
Sexall
Healthy VolunteersNo
Age GroupsAdult (18-64), Older Adult (65+)

You may qualify if:

  • A diagnosis of CCUS:
  • Persistent cytopenia for \> 6 months defined as hgb \< 11.3 g/dL (7 mmol/L) in women and hgb \< 12.9 g/dL (8 mmol/L) in men, thrombocyte count \< 150 x 10\^9/L or neutrophil count \< 1.8 x 10\^9/L
  • Normal cytogenetics (with the exception of deletion of the Y chromosome which can be accepted)
  • A bone marrow morphology that is not diagnostic of MDS or any other malignancy
  • Other common causes of cytopenia (vitamin or other deficiencies, virus infection, etc.) have been ruled out
  • Hematolytic conditions have been ruled out
  • The presence of a detectable mutation in genes recurrently affected in myeloid malignancy representing a clonal marker (excluding germline mutations)
  • A diagnosis of MDS as according to World Health Organization (WHO) 2016 diagnostic criteria
  • Revised international prognostic scoring system (IPSS-R) risk score ≤ 3 AND bone marrow blast percentage \< 5 defining low-risk
  • A diagnosis of CMML-0 or -1 as according to WHO 2016 diagnostic criteria
  • AND
  • (All diagnostic categories) The presence of a detectable mutation in genes recurrently affected in myeloid malignancy representing a clonal marker (excluding germline mutations)

You may not qualify if:

  • Unwillingness to discontinue any and all use of vitamin C medication/supplementation including multivitamin at least 24 hours prior to Baseline investigations and sampling
  • Lack of ability to understand the information given, or lack of willingness to sign a written informed consent document
  • Treatment with chemotherapy within the past 6 months
  • Patients receiving active treatment for their myeloid malignancy, including investigational agents, with the exception of granulocyte colony-stimulating factor (G-CSF) and erythropoietin
  • History of allergic reactions to ascorbic acid
  • Unwillingness to comply with all aspects of the protocol

Contact the study team to confirm eligibility.

Sponsors & Collaborators

Study Sites (5)

Keck Hospital of University of Southern California

Los Angeles, California, 90033, United States

Location

Rigshospitalet

Copenhagen, N/A = Not Applicable, 2100, Denmark

Location

Aalborg University Hospital

Aalborg, Denmark

Location

Herlev University Hospital

Copenhagen, 2730, Denmark

Location

Odense University Hospital

Odense, Denmark

Location

Related Publications (17)

  • Busque L, Mio R, Mattioli J, Brais E, Blais N, Lalonde Y, Maragh M, Gilliland DG. Nonrandom X-inactivation patterns in normal females: lyonization ratios vary with age. Blood. 1996 Jul 1;88(1):59-65.

    PMID: 8704202BACKGROUND
  • Genovese G, Kahler AK, Handsaker RE, Lindberg J, Rose SA, Bakhoum SF, Chambert K, Mick E, Neale BM, Fromer M, Purcell SM, Svantesson O, Landen M, Hoglund M, Lehmann S, Gabriel SB, Moran JL, Lander ES, Sullivan PF, Sklar P, Gronberg H, Hultman CM, McCarroll SA. Clonal hematopoiesis and blood-cancer risk inferred from blood DNA sequence. N Engl J Med. 2014 Dec 25;371(26):2477-87. doi: 10.1056/NEJMoa1409405. Epub 2014 Nov 26.

    PMID: 25426838BACKGROUND
  • Jaiswal S, Fontanillas P, Flannick J, Manning A, Grauman PV, Mar BG, Lindsley RC, Mermel CH, Burtt N, Chavez A, Higgins JM, Moltchanov V, Kuo FC, Kluk MJ, Henderson B, Kinnunen L, Koistinen HA, Ladenvall C, Getz G, Correa A, Banahan BF, Gabriel S, Kathiresan S, Stringham HM, McCarthy MI, Boehnke M, Tuomilehto J, Haiman C, Groop L, Atzmon G, Wilson JG, Neuberg D, Altshuler D, Ebert BL. Age-related clonal hematopoiesis associated with adverse outcomes. N Engl J Med. 2014 Dec 25;371(26):2488-98. doi: 10.1056/NEJMoa1408617. Epub 2014 Nov 26.

    PMID: 25426837BACKGROUND
  • Shih AH, Abdel-Wahab O, Patel JP, Levine RL. The role of mutations in epigenetic regulators in myeloid malignancies. Nat Rev Cancer. 2012 Sep;12(9):599-612. doi: 10.1038/nrc3343. Epub 2012 Aug 17.

    PMID: 22898539BACKGROUND
  • Tahiliani M, Koh KP, Shen Y, Pastor WA, Bandukwala H, Brudno Y, Agarwal S, Iyer LM, Liu DR, Aravind L, Rao A. Conversion of 5-methylcytosine to 5-hydroxymethylcytosine in mammalian DNA by MLL partner TET1. Science. 2009 May 15;324(5929):930-5. doi: 10.1126/science.1170116. Epub 2009 Apr 16.

    PMID: 19372391BACKGROUND
  • Pastor WA, Aravind L, Rao A. TETonic shift: biological roles of TET proteins in DNA demethylation and transcription. Nat Rev Mol Cell Biol. 2013 Jun;14(6):341-56. doi: 10.1038/nrm3589.

    PMID: 23698584BACKGROUND
  • Cimmino L, Dawlaty MM, Ndiaye-Lobry D, Yap YS, Bakogianni S, Yu Y, Bhattacharyya S, Shaknovich R, Geng H, Lobry C, Mullenders J, King B, Trimarchi T, Aranda-Orgilles B, Liu C, Shen S, Verma AK, Jaenisch R, Aifantis I. TET1 is a tumor suppressor of hematopoietic malignancy. Nat Immunol. 2015 Jun;16(6):653-62. doi: 10.1038/ni.3148. Epub 2015 Apr 13.

    PMID: 25867473BACKGROUND
  • Monfort A, Wutz A. Breathing-in epigenetic change with vitamin C. EMBO Rep. 2013 Apr;14(4):337-46. doi: 10.1038/embor.2013.29. Epub 2013 Mar 15.

    PMID: 23492828BACKGROUND
  • Grzybowski A, Pietrzak K. Albert Szent-Gyorgyi (1893-1986): the scientist who discovered vitamin C. Clin Dermatol. 2013 May-Jun;31(3):327-31. doi: 10.1016/j.clindermatol.2012.08.001.

    PMID: 23738385BACKGROUND
  • Nishikimi M, Fukuyama R, Minoshima S, Shimizu N, Yagi K. Cloning and chromosomal mapping of the human nonfunctional gene for L-gulono-gamma-lactone oxidase, the enzyme for L-ascorbic acid biosynthesis missing in man. J Biol Chem. 1994 May 6;269(18):13685-8.

    PMID: 8175804BACKGROUND
  • Blaschke K, Ebata KT, Karimi MM, Zepeda-Martinez JA, Goyal P, Mahapatra S, Tam A, Laird DJ, Hirst M, Rao A, Lorincz MC, Ramalho-Santos M. Vitamin C induces Tet-dependent DNA demethylation and a blastocyst-like state in ES cells. Nature. 2013 Aug 8;500(7461):222-6. doi: 10.1038/nature12362. Epub 2013 Jun 30.

    PMID: 23812591BACKGROUND
  • Liu M, Ohtani H, Zhou W, Orskov AD, Charlet J, Zhang YW, Shen H, Baylin SB, Liang G, Gronbaek K, Jones PA. Vitamin C increases viral mimicry induced by 5-aza-2'-deoxycytidine. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 2016 Sep 13;113(37):10238-44. doi: 10.1073/pnas.1612262113. Epub 2016 Aug 29.

    PMID: 27573823BACKGROUND
  • Ko M, Huang Y, Jankowska AM, Pape UJ, Tahiliani M, Bandukwala HS, An J, Lamperti ED, Koh KP, Ganetzky R, Liu XS, Aravind L, Agarwal S, Maciejewski JP, Rao A. Impaired hydroxylation of 5-methylcytosine in myeloid cancers with mutant TET2. Nature. 2010 Dec 9;468(7325):839-43. doi: 10.1038/nature09586.

    PMID: 21057493BACKGROUND
  • Agathocleous M, Meacham CE, Burgess RJ, Piskounova E, Zhao Z, Crane GM, Cowin BL, Bruner E, Murphy MM, Chen W, Spangrude GJ, Hu Z, DeBerardinis RJ, Morrison SJ. Ascorbate regulates haematopoietic stem cell function and leukaemogenesis. Nature. 2017 Sep 28;549(7673):476-481. doi: 10.1038/nature23876. Epub 2017 Aug 21.

    PMID: 28825709BACKGROUND
  • Lykkesfeldt J. Ascorbate and dehydroascorbic acid as reliable biomarkers of oxidative stress: analytical reproducibility and long-term stability of plasma samples subjected to acidic deproteinization. Cancer Epidemiol Biomarkers Prev. 2007 Nov;16(11):2513-6. doi: 10.1158/1055-9965.EPI-07-0639.

    PMID: 18006947BACKGROUND
  • Hansen JW, Westman MK, Sjo LD, Saft L, Kristensen LS, Orskov AD, Treppendahl M, Andersen MK, Gronbaek K. Mutations in idiopathic cytopenia of undetermined significance assist diagnostics and correlate to dysplastic changes. Am J Hematol. 2016 Dec;91(12):1234-1238. doi: 10.1002/ajh.24554. Epub 2016 Nov 8.

    PMID: 27717004BACKGROUND
  • Greenberg PL, Tuechler H, Schanz J, Sanz G, Garcia-Manero G, Sole F, Bennett JM, Bowen D, Fenaux P, Dreyfus F, Kantarjian H, Kuendgen A, Levis A, Malcovati L, Cazzola M, Cermak J, Fonatsch C, Le Beau MM, Slovak ML, Krieger O, Luebbert M, Maciejewski J, Magalhaes SM, Miyazaki Y, Pfeilstocker M, Sekeres M, Sperr WR, Stauder R, Tauro S, Valent P, Vallespi T, van de Loosdrecht AA, Germing U, Haase D. Revised international prognostic scoring system for myelodysplastic syndromes. Blood. 2012 Sep 20;120(12):2454-65. doi: 10.1182/blood-2012-03-420489. Epub 2012 Jun 27.

    PMID: 22740453BACKGROUND

MeSH Terms

Conditions

Myelodysplastic SyndromesCytopeniaLeukemia, Myelomonocytic, Chronic

Interventions

Ascorbic Acid

Condition Hierarchy (Ancestors)

Bone Marrow DiseasesHematologic DiseasesHemic and Lymphatic DiseasesLeukemia, MyeloidLeukemiaNeoplasms by Histologic TypeNeoplasmsMyelodysplastic-Myeloproliferative DiseasesChronic DiseaseDisease AttributesPathologic ProcessesPathological Conditions, Signs and Symptoms

Intervention Hierarchy (Ancestors)

Sugar AcidsAcids, AcyclicCarboxylic AcidsOrganic ChemicalsHydroxy AcidsCarbohydrates

Study Officials

  • Kirsten Grønbæk, Professor

    Rigshospitalet, Denmark

    PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATOR

Study Design

Study Type
interventional
Phase
not applicable
Allocation
RANDOMIZED
Masking
QUADRUPLE
Who Masked
PARTICIPANT, CARE PROVIDER, INVESTIGATOR, OUTCOMES ASSESSOR
Masking Details
Randomization performed by the independent provider of study medication (Glostrup Pharmacy).
Purpose
PREVENTION
Intervention Model
PARALLEL
Model Details: Prospective, randomized, placebo-controlled trial.
Sponsor Type
OTHER
Responsible Party
PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATOR
PI Title
Professor, MD, DMSc

Study Record Dates

First Submitted

September 20, 2018

First Posted

September 24, 2018

Study Start

November 21, 2017

Primary Completion

September 27, 2023

Study Completion

September 27, 2025

Last Updated

April 17, 2024

Record last verified: 2024-04

Data Sharing

IPD Sharing
Will not share

Locations