Professor Margreet Vissers

Professor Jens Lykkesfeldt

Faculty of Health and Medical Sciences, University of Copenhagen, Denmark

Professor Jens Lykkesfeldt graduated as M.Sc. in organic chemistry in 1989 and received his Ph.D. in Biochemistry in 1992 from the Technical University of Denmark. He became D.Sc. in medicine in 2005. He was a visiting scientist at Department of Molecular and Cell Biology, University of California, Berkeley, USA from 1996 to 1998, became associate professor in pharmacology at the Royal Veterinary and Agricultural University during 1998 to 2006, and professor in biotechnology in 2007. Since 2009, he has been professor and chair in experimental pharmacology and toxicology at Faculty of Health and Medical Sciences, University of Copenhagen.

Dr. Lykkesfeldt is head of the Danish In Vivo Pharmacology PhD program and director of the LifePharm Centre for In Vivo Pharmacology. In a variety of studies ranging from isolated cells, animal models and clinical trials, Dr. Lykkesfeldt and his group study the effects of oxidative insults on the redox homeostasis as well as the possible benefit of pharmacological intervention to selected groups of animals or humans. Together with measurements of oxidative damage, they investigate the link between oxidative stress and various pathological conditions. The primary goal is to understand the role and mechanism of altered redox status in disease development and thereby pave the road for better prevention strategies and improved pharmacotherapy for humans.

Associate Professor Anitra Carr

Department of Pathology & Biomedical Science, University of Otago, Christchurch, New Zealand

A/Prof Anitra Carr is a Sir Charles Hercus Health Research Fellow in the Department of Pathology & Biomedical Science at the University of Otago, Christchurch, NZ. Following a PhD at the University of Otago, Christchurch, A/Prof Carr obtained an American Heart Association Post-doctoral Fellowship which was carried out at the Linus Pauling Institute, Oregon State University, USA. Whilst there she produced a number of high impact publications on the role of vitamin C in human health and disease.

A/Prof Carr is currently researching the role of vitamin C in the prevention and treatment of acute and chronic diseases such as cancer and infection. She has received funding from the Health Research Council of New Zealand and the Canterbury Medical Research Foundation to undertake research into the role of vitamin C in severe infection, including pneumonia and sepsis. A/Prof Carr hopes to not only elucidate the underlying mechanisms of action of vitamin C, but to also improve the outcomes of patients with these conditions.

Associate Professor Gabi Dachs

Department of Pathology & Biomedical Science, University of Otago, Christchurch, New Zealand

A/Prof Dachs is a biomedical researcher at the University of Otago Christchurch (UOC), with an interest in cancer treatment. She obtained her PhD from the University of Cape Town, followed by postdoctoral research on tumour hypoxia at the Medical Research Council in the UK, and subsequently at the Gray Cancer Institute in London. Gabi joined the Department of Pathology at UOC in 2003 where she is studying the role of ascorbate on the tumour microenvironment.

Associate Professor Gaofeng Wang

Miller School of Medicine, University of Miami, FL, USA.

Gaofeng Wang, Ph.D., is an Associate Professor in the Department of Human Genetics, University of Miami. He is also a primary member of John P. Hussman Institute for Human Genomics and Sylvester Comprehensive Cancer Center. Dr. Wang and colleagues are the first to publish that vitamin C is a cofactor for TET enzymes, as it does for other iron and 2-oxoglutarate dependent hydroxylases. Their findings were confirmed by later reports from other groups and are now widely accepted. Dr. Wang’s current research focuses on understanding the role of vitamin C, as a cofactor for DNA demethylases and histone demethylases, in cancer treatment and diabetic complications.

Associate Professor Qi Chen

Department of Pharmacology, Toxicology and Therapeutics, University of Kansas Medical Center, Kansas City, KS, USA.

Dr. Qi Chen is an Associate Professor in the Department of Pharmacology, Toxicology and Therapeutics at the University of Kansas Medical Center, Kansas City, Kansas USA. Dr. Chen completed  her Ph.D. in biochemistry in 2003 at the Sun Yet-sen University, China, and performed a 5-year post-doctoral research at the National Institutes of Health (NIH), USA. She has published >40 papers in prestigious scientific journals, and has been a reviewer for a number of national and international research grant agencies, including Cancer Society of New Zealand.

Dr. Chen has been a key player in the fundamental work that revealed the scientific basis for high dose intravenous ascorbate in cancer treatment. Her work re-opens rigorous investigation in using the low-toxic agent vitamin C in treating cancer, and has provided basis for clinical trials in cancer patients all over the world. Dr. Chen also documented that combination of pharmacologic ascorbate with chemotherapies synergistically inhibited tumor progress, and translated the discovery into clinical studies. Her studies have been reported by major health/science/public media and have been followed up by laboratories all over the world. Dr. Chen’s current work has a focus on mechanisms of ascorbate actions, and identifying clinical biomarkers that predict responses to high dose IV ascorbate treatment.

Professor Jeanne Drisko

MD, CNS, FACN, FACAM

University of Kansas Medical Center, Kansas City, KS, USA.

Jeanne A Drisko, MD is the founding director and Riordan Endowed Professor of Orthomolecular Medicine, University of Kansas Medical Center, KU Integrative Medicine having established the program in 1998. Dr Drisko is board certified in Integrative Medicine through the American Board of Physician Specialties. She developed a nationally recognized fellowship in Integrative Medicine through KU Integrative Medicine. Dr Drisko has peer-reviewed published research most notably for investigating intravenous vitamin C and chelation therapy through the Trial to Assess Chelation Therapy. She received an award in 2015 for her research in vitamin C from the European Congress of Integrative Medicine. Dr Drisko has served the integrative medicine community by sitting on the boards of organizations including Alliance for Natural Health – USA (Executive Board), American College for Advancement in Medicine (Executive Committee and past-president), and the Consortium of Academic Health Centers for Integrative Medicine (Steering Committee).

Professor Dr Gerard MJ Bos

Maastricht University Medical Center, Maastricht, The Netherlands.

After Medical School and a PhD program on immunology (both at the medical school in Maastricht, The Netherlands) Gerard Bos trained in internal medicine in Maastricht and The Hague, and then trained as a Haematologist, followed by a fellowship at the Daniel den Hoed Cancer Centre, Rotterdam, for three years (head Prof Dr B Lowenberg). Thereafter he obtained a fellowship (Clinical Research Award by the Dutch Cancer Foundation) to perform a two year research program on tumor-immunology (Leiden, Brussels and Utrecht). He started in Maastricht 2000, as internist-haematologist.  His extra focus is on Multiple Myeloma and Chronic Myeloid Leukemia. His preclinical research has a focus on cell therapy: development of cancer vaccines, the role of natural killer cells in the fight against cancer and immune reconstitution after bone marrow transplantation. Research indicates that there is a possible role for vitamin C in immune reconstitution. In 2013 he was appointed as professor of medical education and tumor-immunology. In 2016 he was appointed as professor in immunology of cancer. Since 2015 he has been CEO of CiMaas, a biotech company with a focus on immunotherapy.

Dr Damian Wojcik

BSc, MBChB, DipObs, DCH, Dip Religious Studies, FIBCMT, FACNEM, FRNZCGP, Master Forensic Medicine (Monash), FFCFM (RCPA)

Northland Environmental Health Clinic, Whangarei, New Zealand.

Dr Wojcik graduated from Auckland Medical School, New Zealand, in 1979. He is a Family Physician, Clinical Metal Toxicologist, and Forensic Physician. In 2001 he founded the Northland Environmental Health Clinic (NEHC) to explore a path to Integrative medicine. NEHC has adopted a model of healthcare that not only treats symptoms, but also seeks out, and where possible, remedies the underlying nutritional and environmental causes of illness.

Dr Wojcik has a post graduate Fellowship in Nutrition and Environmental Medicine from the Australasian College of Nutrition and Environmental Medicine (ACNEM), and as a Forensic Physician has 22 years’ experience as a police medical officer. Current areas of active research are in metal toxicology, agricultural spray toxicity, the biological effects of non-ionizing radiation (RFR) with a particular focus on brain tumours, and nutritional medicine including high dose IV vitamin C for cancer patients.

Professor Harri Hemilä

Department of Public Health, University of Helsinki, Helsinki, Finland.

Prof Hemilä first studied biochemistry and received his PhD (biochemistry) in 1993. Thereafter, he studied medicine and received his MD degree, and PhD (epidemiology) in 2006. His major scientific interest has been the effects of vitamin C on the common cold, and on infections in general. He has carried out a number of meta-analyses that have estimated the effects of vitamin C from studies published over half a century. He has also analyzed the effects of vitamin E on infections and on total mortality in the ATBC Study data set of 29,133 Finnish male smokers. Most recently he has carried out meta-analyses on the treatment effects of zinc lozenges on the duration of the common cold. He is currently an adjunct professor at the Department of Public Health at the University of Helsinki. Along with research, he is doing clinical work in the GP context. He has 132 PubMed publications, 60 of which are focused on vitamin C.

Professor Alpha A. (Berry) Fowler, III, MD

Department of Internal Medicine, Virginia Commonwealth University School of Medicine, Richmond, VA, USA.

Dr. Berry Fowler is the William Taliaferro Thompson Professor of Medicine at Virginia Commonwealth University (VCU) in Richmond, Virginia and Director of the VCU Johnson Center for Critical Care and Pulmonary Research. Dr. Fowler received Internal Medicine training at VCU, followed by fellowship training in Pulmonary and Critical Care Medicine at the University of Colorado Health Sciences Center in Denver, Colorado. Dr. Fowler joined the VCU Division of Pulmonary Disease and Critical Care Medicine in the Department of Internal Medicine in 1982 where he has been on faculty for the last 36 years. During his years on faculty, Dr. Fowler has focused on sepsis and acute lung injury in the form of acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS). He has engaged in significant bench research and explored acute lung injury in a variety of animal model systems. He has conducted institution-wide clinical research in patients with ARDS during his faculty tenure. Most recently, Dr. Fowler successfully directed a multi-institutional acute lung trial in patients with ARDS, entitled: The Vitamin C Infusion for TReatment In Sepsis induced Acute Lung Injury (CITRIS-ALI). This trial, the results of which will be presented, examined intravenous infusion of high dose vitamin C in patients with sepsis-induced ARDS.

Dr Michael Hooper

Department of Internal Medicine, Eastern Virginia Medical School, Norfolk, VA, USA.

Dr. Hooper is a Pulmonary and Critical Care Medicine physician practicing at Eastern Virginia Medical School (in Norfolk, VA, USA).  He trained at Vanderbilt University Medical Center (Nashville, TN).  He has a Masters in Clinical Investigation and is board certified in Clinical Informatics.  Primary research interests include methods for early detection of sepsis and metabolic resuscitation. He has also been involved in studies investigating the role of vitamin C in treating sepsis.

Stacey LaRay Doxey

Registered Nurse, Sentara Norfolk General Hospital, General Intensive Care Unit

My name is Stacey Doxey. I am a Registered Nurse and a 2002 graduate of Sentara’s School of Health Professions. I started my professional career as a nursing care partner while completing my education. Upon graduation, I worked in an intermediate care unit at Sentara Norfolk General Hospital. Two years later, I was recruited to work in the General Intensive Care Unit (GICU). I am very proud to have served there for the past 16 years. During that time, I have had the opportunity to work alongside Dr Paul Marik during his Sepsis Treatment study. The application of this study which is now known as The Vitamin C Protocol has produced dramatically positive results for patients suffering from sepsis.

Stephanie Swain

BSN, RN, CCRN

RN Unit Coordinator, General Intensive Care Unit, Sentara Norfolk General Hospital

Over a decade of experience as a medical/ surgical ICU nurse; certified as a Critical Care Registered Nurse. Have worked primarily with Septic Shock patients. Has experience as a bedside clinician administering the Vitamin C Protocol developed by Dr. Paul Marik to septic patients and can speak to the dramatic effects these medications can produce in caring for the ICU Septic Shock patient.

Dr Tim Ewer

MB ChB, MMedSc, MRCP, FRACP, FRNZCGP, FACNEM

Mapua Health Centre, Nelson, New Zealand.

Dr Ewer has been working in integrative medicine for over 25 years and he is vocationally registered as both a specialist physician and a general practitioner.  He has a health centre near Nelson, New Zealand, with 22 staff, where he is also involved in teaching medical students and GP registrars. Prior to this he was a hospital physician for 10 years after gaining his medical degree and specialist qualifications in the UK. He has trained in a variety of modalities including nutrition, environmental medicine, hyperbaric medicine, acupuncture and biofeedback.

He has been an advisor to the World Health Organisation on natural medicine and to the New Zealand government on CAM.  He is the NZ board member of the Australasian Integrative Medicine Association (AIMA) and a member of the educational faculty of the Australian College of Nutrition and Environmental Medicine (ACNEM).

Professor Margreet Vissers

Department of Pathology & Biomedical Science, University of Otago, Christchurch, New Zealand

Prof Margreet Vissers is a senior research scientist in the Centre for Free Radical Research at the University of Otago, Christchurch. She leads a team investigating vitamin C and its many functions in the body. Prof Vissers’ research has increased our understanding of the relationship between vitamin C and the regulation of cancer cell growth that is driven by hypoxia. In addition she has expertise in oxidant stress which contributes to the diseases of aging, heart disease, arthritis and cancer. Antioxidants, including vitamin C, protect against these conditions and Prof Vissers’ research extends our understanding of the roles of food-based antioxidants for good health and disease prevention.

Prof Vissers has published over 100 peer-reviewed papers and received an Excellence in Research medal from the University of Otago, Christchurch in recognition of long-term high-level research achievement. She has an established international reputation for her research work and is regularly invited as a plenary speaker at national and international meetings. She maintains a high public profile for her work on vitamin C in cancer and in general health.

Professor Jeanne Drisko

MD, CNS, FACN, FACAM

University of Kansas Medical Center, Kansas City, KS, USA.

Jeanne A Drisko, MD is the founding director and Riordan Endowed Professor of Orthomolecular Medicine, University of Kansas Medical Center, KU Integrative Medicine having established the program in 1998. Dr Drisko is board certified in Integrative Medicine through the American Board of Physician Specialties. She developed a nationally recognized fellowship in Integrative Medicine through KU Integrative Medicine. Dr Drisko has peer-reviewed published research most notably for investigating intravenous vitamin C and chelation therapy through the Trial to Assess Chelation Therapy. She received an award in 2015 for her research in vitamin C from the European Congress of Integrative Medicine. Dr Drisko has served the integrative medicine community by sitting on the boards of organizations including Alliance for Natural Health – USA (Executive Board), American College for Advancement in Medicine (Executive Committee and past-president), and the Consortium of Academic Health Centers for Integrative Medicine (Steering Committee).

Dr Michael Hooper

Department of Internal Medicine, Eastern Virginia Medical School, Norfolk, VA, USA.

Dr. Hooper is a Pulmonary and Critical Care Medicine physician practicing at Eastern Virginia Medical School (in Norfolk, VA, USA). He trained at Vanderbilt University Medical Center (Nashville, TN). He has a Masters in Clinical Investigation and is board certified in Clinical Informatics. Primary research interests include methods for early detection of sepsis and metabolic resuscitation. He has also been involved in studies investigating the role of vitamin C in treating sepsis.

Stacey LaRay Doxey

Registered Nurse, Sentara Norfolk General Hospital, General Intensive Care Unit

My name is Stacey Doxey. I am a Registered Nurse and a 2002 graduate of Sentara’s School of Health Professions. I started my professional career as a nursing care partner while completing my education. Upon graduation, I worked in an intermediate care unit at Sentara Norfolk General Hospital. Two years later, I was recruited to work in the General Intensive Care Unit (GICU). I am very proud to have served there for the past 16 years. During that time, I have had the opportunity to work alongside Dr Paul Marik during his Sepsis Treatment study. The application of this study which is now known as The Vitamin C Protocol has produced dramatically positive results for patients suffering from sepsis.

Stephanie Swain

BSN, RN, CCRN

RN Unit Coordinator, General Intensive Care Unit, Sentara Norfolk General Hospital

Over a decade of experience as a medical/ surgical ICU nurse; certified as a Critical Care Registered Nurse. Have worked primarily with Septic Shock patients. Has experience as a bedside clinician administering the Vitamin C Protocol developed by Dr. Paul Marik to septic patients and can speak to the dramatic effects these medications can produce in caring for the ICU Septic Shock patient.