The theory is that hydrogen peroxide can introduce oxygen into cancer cells and kill them.
This article explains how hydrogen peroxide therapy is proposed to work.
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What Is Hydrogen Peroxide Therapy?
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Hydrogen peroxide is a chemical compound produced by every cell in the body.
Upon contact with catalase, an enzyme from the liver, hydrogen peroxide breaks down into oxygen and water.
Hydrogen peroxide therapy is not approved by the FDA to treat cancer.
Alternative medicine practitioners deliver hydrogen peroxide therapy directly into the bloodstream via an IV.
The liquid solution typically contains saline (salt water), and less than 2% hydrogen peroxide.
For cancer, the therapy is used by itself, or in addition toradiation therapy.
Oxidative therapy was used to help treat cancer, skin diseases, andpolio.
Is There Any Evidence to Support Hydrogen Peroxide Therapy?
The study was performed in mice with lung and pancreatic cancer.
Another study from 2021 involved abreast tumorsitting close to the skin’s surface.
A hydrogen peroxide-soaked gauze was applied to the tumor during radiotherapy.
Three months post-treatment, the breast tumor appeared to be in complete remission.
Researchers theorized that hydrogen peroxide increased the tumor’s sensitivity to radiation.
Phase I of a small clinical trial published in 2020 also showed promising results.
The few studies done in humans are small, and the mode of administering hydrogen peroxide is varied.
Does Hydrogen Peroxide Detox the Body?
Is Hydrogen Peroxide Therapy Legal?
Hydrogen peroxide by itself is not illegal.
In the case that a product is legal but not FDA-approved, it is used off-label.
Risks of Hydrogen Peroxide Therapy
Hydrogen peroxide should only be used as a household cleaner or disinfectant.
Store-bought hydrogen peroxide should never be applied to the skin or ingested in any way.
The cause of death was heart failure due to the toxic effects of hydrogen peroxide administered by IV.
Summary
Hydrogen peroxide is an oxidizing liquid that creates oxygen in the body.
However, hydrogen peroxide is not FDA-approved for treating cancer.
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2021 May;13(593):eabb3768.
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