Abstract
Vitamin D is not really a vitamin but the precursor to the potent steroid hormone calcitriol, which has widespread actions throughout the body. Calcitriol regulates numerous cellular pathways that could have a role in determining cancer risk and prognosis. Although epidemiological and early clinical trials are inconsistent, and randomized control trials in humans do not yet exist to conclusively support a beneficial role for vitamin D, accumulating results from preclinical and some clinical studies strongly suggest that vitamin D deficiency increases the risk of developing cancer and that avoiding deficiency and adding vitamin D supplements might be an economical and safe way to reduce cancer incidence and improve cancer prognosis and outcome.
Publication types
- Research Support, N.I.H., Extramural
- Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't
- Review
MeSH terms
- 25-Hydroxyvitamin D3 1-alpha-Hydroxylase / metabolism
- Breast Neoplasms / metabolism
- Calcitriol / physiology*
- Cholecalciferol / physiology
- Colonic Neoplasms / metabolism
- Disease Progression
- Endocrine System
- Female
- Humans
- Male
- Neoplasms / pathology*
- Neoplasms / prevention & control*
- Neoplastic Stem Cells / cytology
- Polymorphism, Genetic
- Prognosis
- Prostatic Neoplasms / metabolism
- Randomized Controlled Trials as Topic
- Risk
- Signal Transduction
- Steroid Hydroxylases / metabolism
- Vitamin D / physiology*
- Vitamin D Deficiency / complications
- Vitamin D3 24-Hydroxylase
Substances
- Vitamin D
- Cholecalciferol
- Steroid Hydroxylases
- Vitamin D3 24-Hydroxylase
- 25-Hydroxyvitamin D3 1-alpha-Hydroxylase
- Calcitriol