Researchers at the University of Calgary have uncovered early evidence that high-dose niacin, a form of vitamin B3, could help patients survive glioblastoma longer when combined with standard cancer treatment. The findings emerged from a clinical trial that exceeded its initial success benchmarks, offering potential hope for a disease that has resisted meaningful treatment advances for two decades.
Glioblastoma is the most aggressive form of brain cancer in adults. Even after surgery to remove tumors, followed by radiation and chemotherapy, the cancer frequently returns. Survival rates have stalled for 20 years, leaving doctors with limited options to offer their patients.
The trial was designed by Drs. Gloria Roldan Urgoiti, a brain cancer specialist, and Wee Yong, a neuroscientist who studies how the immune system interacts with the brain. Their hypothesis centered on a key weakness in glioblastoma: the tumor actively suppresses immune function, preventing the body's natural defenses from attacking cancer cells.
Niacin, they theorized, could reawaken these dormant immune cells and restore their ability to recognize and destroy tumor cells. Early mouse studies showed the approach extended survival, prompting the team to move forward with human testing.
Among the first 24 patients enrolled in the trial, 82 percent showed no disease progression at six months. That translates to a 28 percent improvement over historical data from previous studies. The researchers had set a threshold of at least 20 percent improvement before moving forward, so the results exceeded expectations.
Edward Waldner, a 55-year-old patient in the trial, experienced the kind of persistent fatigue and walking changes that initially seemed minor before a hospital visit revealed a brain mass. After surgery confirmed glioblastoma, he was invited to participate in the niacin study. "I can tell you being part of this research helps me mentally because we're trying," Waldner said. "When I left the hospital after surgery I was told, that's it, that's all we can do." Today, his scans remain stable.
Researchers caution that high doses of niacin carry risks and must be administered under strict medical supervision. The trial is continuing enrollment, with the team aiming to enroll 48 total participants and complete their final analysis by late 2026 or early 2027.
The research has been published in the Journal of Neuro-Oncology and is supported by the Canadian Institutes of Health Research and the Alberta Cancer Foundation.
Author Jessica Williams: "For a cancer that has outlasted decades of research, any genuine improvement in survival deserves serious follow-up, but the sample size here is still small enough to require healthy skepticism until the larger trial concludes."
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