Vitamin A ?? - Reluctant to follow doctor's advice
 

Has anyone heard anything about Vitamin A helping with chemo induced neuropathy or generally with post chemo treatment (CIPN)?

I have a doctor that is trained both in classical school medicine and alternative medicine.

She is suggesting that I start on Vitamin A to help with a host of things including my CIPN. Her mentor, has the same training, ran the complementary health department at a nearby university and just retired, said he had some success with this.

I am reluctant to do this.

Last year, I had oncologists issuing me too much Vitamin B6 without testing me during my chemo, giving me toxic levels which compounded my neuropathy. Since the B6 is water soluble, my B6 blood levels have come down significantly but still haven't fully recovered.

Since Vitamin A is fat soluable, I am now very wary of experimenting with something that is harder to get out of my system.

Also, my quick search hasn't turned up anything saying Vitamin A helps with neuropathy.

Also, other vitamins, such as vitamin E, has shown to increase somewhat-related cancers, such as colon cancer.

Also, who knows how this might react with the list of other stuff I am taking for neuropathy and just generally to get my system back in order.

Has anyone heard of Vitamin A and chemo induced neuropathy or just help generally post chemo, perhaps with immune system restoration?

Any other thoughts?

I could not find much for Vitamin A--retinol--

But I did find some Google entries for betacarotene --Vit A precursor, for neuropathy.

I recall reading a paper a few years ago that suggested when using antioxidants like Vit E...that they should be taken in a group and not singly. Vit E alone does not help lung cancer for example. But used with betacarotene and Vit C they hand off the damaging free radicals to each other and remove them more safely.

So perhaps your doctor meant betacarotene instead of Vit A itself?

thanks
 

Big Thanks for your thoughts. I will find out.