The research team suggests there may be a genetic link to both pre-eclampsia and cancer.
One in three women with a history of pre-eclampsia carried the exon 3 defect.
"This substantial research suggests a genetic link between cardiovascular disease and pre-eclampsia, " a spokeswoman said.
Overall, the levels of two chemicals which relate to pre-eclampsia were reduced by 21% in the group.
Ann Marie Barnard, chief executive of Action on Pre-Eclampsia, said an accurate test would help many women.
These include abruption, where the placenta separates from the uterus wall, and the potentially life-threatening condition pre-eclampsia.
The British Heart Foundation is funding a study, which aims to identify the genes responsible for pre-eclampsia.
Pre-eclampsia happened in 17% of the placebo group, compared with only 8% of those in the vitamin group.
An initial study indicated that taking the vitamins early in pregnancy halved rates of pre-eclampsia in high-risk women.
The risk of serious pre-eclampsia was three times greater for women, and nearly twice as great for men.
The symptoms of pre-eclampsia have been linked to the production of toxic molecules called free radicals by the placenta.
Problems range from failure of the embryo to implant in the womb, leading to miscarriage, to rupture of the placenta and pre-eclampsia.
The cause of pre-eclampsia is unknown, but it is clear that the placenta fails to invade into the wall of the mother's uterus.
They conclude that an imbalance between toxic compounds and substances that neutralise and clear these toxins may be important in the development of pre-eclampsia.
Mike Rich, chief executive of Action on Pre-Eclampsia, said women planning to become pregnant can take action to reduce their risks of developing the condition.
They believe that in some women plasma can stimulate fat cells and cause them to release excessive amounts of fatty acids and other toxic products triggering pre-eclampsia.
Although carried out on small numbers of women, the researchers say the test is highly accurate for predicting pre-eclampsia and could alert doctors early to the problem.
They also claim that diet, insulin resistance, smoking or patterns of infection may affect the development of both cancer and pre-eclampsia and their effects may differ between populations.
Dr Karin Zetterstrom, study leader and gynaecologist and obstetrician at Orebro University Hospital in Sweden, said pre-eclampsia could be dangerous to a mother and baby in many ways.
One of Mrs Wadsworth's clients suffered from pre-eclampsia and needed a Caesarean section, but she was able to use the technique to make the experience as pleasant as possible.
In the study, carried out by researchers from Tommy's, women will be given extra reserves of the vitamin supplements to see if additional antioxidants can prevent women developing pre-eclampsia.
We would advise all women, pregnant and considering becoming pregnant to eat a sensible and healthy diet in order to help reduce the risk of pregnancy complications such as pre-eclampsia.
Some, but not all, previous studies have shown a protective effect of pre-eclampsia on breast cancer, although such research has been carried out mainly in northern Europe and North American populations.
Complications such as pre-eclampsia were hard to predict so it was not possible to decide which women were "low risk" cases and therefore suitable for birth at midwife-led units, he said.
Mike Rich, chief executive of the charity Action on Pre-eclampsia, said, while progress had been made in recent years, there was still a long way to go before it was fully understood.
Babies can also be delivered prematurely if doctors decide the health of the mother or baby is at risk, perhaps because the mother has developed pre-eclampsia or if the baby is abnormally small.
The study also discovered that West Asian women were more likely to have pre-eclampsia as were those from a lower social class and those with gestational diabetes - the type which occurs during pregnancy.
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