Cancer and vitamin D
The anti-cancer properties of vitamin D have been confirmed
Svetlana Maslova, Hi-tech+
A long-term study clearly demonstrates that among patients taking vitamin D, the risks of developing tumor metastases were lower by up to 38%. Scientists still cannot say unequivocally whether the supplement protects against cancer in general, but now they see convincing evidence of its benefits for reducing the risk of mortality from it.
The study involving more than 25 thousand people aged 55 and older was completed in December 2017.
Article by Chandler et al. The Effect of Vitamin D 3 Supplements on the Development of Advanced Cancer: A Secondary Analysis of the VITAL Randomized Clinical Trial is published in the journal JAMA Network Open.
The volunteers were monitored for 5.5 years and at the beginning of the experiment none of them had cancer and cardiovascular diseases. The participants were divided into four groups: the first daily took vitamin D and omega-3 fatty acids, the second vitamin D and placebo, the third omega-3 and placebo, and the fourth – only placebo.
"The findings indicate that vitamin D may protect against advanced cancer in the late stages," the scientists said. The strongest risk reduction in people with normal weight gives new insight into the link between vitamin D and late-stage cancer, they added.
Scientists associate the differences in the results with several hypotheses. For example, obesity and related inflammation may reduce the effectiveness of the supplement by reducing the sensitivity of the vitamin D receptor or disrupting signal transmission. On the other hand, previous studies have shown the benefits of vitamin D in people with normal weight on the background of diabetes and its absence in people with obesity. These mechanisms should be studied in further studies.
According to some data, vitamin D deficiency reaches 72% among cancer patients, so the results are of great importance for the prevention of tumor metastasis.
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