Vitamin D May Help Suppress Breast Cancer

The disease was in its early stages in 204 of the women and advanced in the remaining 75.

The study's findings, published in the October 2006 issue of the Journal of Clinical Pathology, demonstrated that women with early stage disease had considerably higher levels of vitamin D (15-184 mmol/l) than the women in the advanced stages of the disease (16-146 mmol/l). The investigators reported that the precise reasons for the difference are not clear, nor is it known whether the decreased levels of vitamin D among those with advanced disease are a cause or a consequence of the cancer itself. However, the researchers' findings, combined with results from earlier studies, lead them to think that lowered levels of vitamin D may promote the progression of the disease to its advanced stages.

Laboratory studies have shown that vitamin D stops cancer cells from dividing and enhances cancer cell death. Vitamin D sufficiency and exposure to sunlight has been shown to reduce the risk of developing breast cancer. The body produces its own vitamin D in the skin when it is exposed to sunlight. The vitamin is also found in certain foods, including eggs and fatty fish.

It is known that vitamin D treatment enhances the activity of specific key genes and suppresses it in others. One that is boosted is p21, which has an important role in controlling the cell cycle.

Dr. Carlo Palmieri, from the department of cancer medicine at Imperial College London and lead author of the study, said, "This report, while being an observational study, clearly shows that circulating vitamin D levels are lower in advanced breast cancer as compared to early breast cancer. It lends support to the idea that vitamin D has a role in the progression of breast cancer. The next step in this research is to try and understand the potential causes and mechanisms underlying these differences and the precise consequences at a molecular level. We also need to look at the potential clinical implications of monitoring and maintaining high circulating vitamin D levels in breast cancer patients. By answering these questions we may be able to improve the treatment of women with breast cancer.”



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Imperial College London