ABSTRACT
Examination of deoxypyridoxine as a possible antitumor agent started soon after the identification of deoxypyridoxine as a B6 antagonist and has continued ever since. Gellhorn and Jones first reported an attempt to treat human cancers with deoxypyridoxine. The study involved three patients with disseminated lymphosarcoma and three with acute leukemia. Complete realimentation with pyridoxine led to recurrence of the tumors and death of the animals. Smith et al. found that deoxypyridoxine showed marginally useful cytotoxic activity in their system using Eagle's KB strain of human carcinoma cells. Tarnowski and Stock observed no synergistic effect when unspecified amounts of deoxypyridoxine were added to the azaserine regimen for treating RC mouse mammary carcinomas in conjunction with normal or B6-deficient diets. Garattini and Vegeto used adult rats implanted with Walker carcinoma. Deoxypyridoxine was administered for about 3 weeks to animals receiving normal and B6-deficient diets.
